Blood Secrets
by YoungTruthLP
Summary: Emma's managed to keep a huge secret from everybody, but when Regina cuts her finger what will she do? Maybe someone finding out isn't so bad after all? Tumblr prompt. OUAT vampire AU. Rated M just in case.
1. Secret

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

Ok, so this is my first Swan Queen one-shot. I decided to fill out a prompt over on Tumblr, so I really hope I did it justice (I love vampire Emma!), enjoy the vampire SQ goodness! I may leave this as a one shot or continue, I haven't made my mind up yet. Enjoy! (The prompt is below)

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**usscaroline:** so here's a swan queen prompt for ya: Emma is a Vampire and has been able to keep control of herself until Regina cuts herself on accident and Emma suddenly realizes that she loves and is attracted to Regina and NEEDS her. a few conditions: Emma was changed after she had Henry, Vampires in this world are able to walk in the light and have simply perpetuated the lies. can be smuty or fluffy or both. canon pre-curse break should be mostly the same. post curse break can be as au as you would like

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**Storybrooke, post-curse, slight AU**

Emma pulled on a shirt and then grabbed her black leather jacket before heading out the door without even a goodbye to her mother. She was already in a rush this morning for a meeting with Regina and knowing how the mayor was with timings, she was already going to be in big trouble if she was even a few seconds late.

She rushed outside and briskly started making her way down the main street of Storybrooke, dreading what she knew was going to be a very long morning. When she finally arrived at the mayor's office, she realized that she was early with a minute to spare. Smirking to herself, she thought she'd surprise Regina by being earlier than expected, even if it was a minute. She loved to prove the once evil queen wrong in ways just like this.

Opening the door however was the worst thing she could have done as Regina was already on her case. "Miss Swan, would you mind knocking next time?" She said, looking up from her desk.

Emma sighed. There goes her little bit of fun. "Sorry Madame Mayor"

Regina nodded as Emma closed the door behind her. "You seem to be unusually early for once"

"Yeah, thought I'd keep you on your toes"

"I won't keep my hopes up, Miss Swan. I know you're not one for routine"

Emma sighed as Regina smirked, the brunette always having the last say, or laugh in this case. The blonde walked forward and sat in the chair across from Regina, ready to get this over with.

"So, what did you want my help with that couldn't wait until the next town meeting?"

"I have something that I have been planning for a long time now and have only just gotten the opportunity to do."

"Like what?" Emma asked, eyeing the other woman suspiciously.

"Henry says that the school needs to raise money to build a new softball stadium. This was a while ago, but when he comes home from practice he reminds me every time"

"Ok, so what has this got to do with me?"

"I need you to come up with a way to raise the money"

"Why can't you do it?"

"Because people don't trust me as much as they do you, Miss Swan. Plus, I'm sure that with your mother being Snow White, many people would be willing to give for a good cause."

Emma rubbed her temples. "You really know how to annoy me, don't you?"

"Oh yes, I very much do"

They had spent all morning coming up with ways on how to raise money, but none of them seemed viable. Just as Regina was showing Emma the blueprints for the new stadium, the brunette hissed.

Emma's head shot up in an instant. "What's wrong?"

Regina held up her finger, Emma seeing blood running down the slender digit. "I got a paper cut"

Emma just stared, her whole body frozen and tensed up at the sight of the crimson liquid that was trickling down Regina's long and slender finger. She watched as the brunette brought it to her mouth and sucked on it, mesmerizing her. She mentally licked her lips at the sight, wanting nothing more than to do that herself, tasting a very forbidden substance, of which belonged to her worst enemy no less. That's what made it all the more sweet, wondering what it would taste like in her mouth, whether it would be heaven sent. She briefly wondered if it had a hint of sweet apples to it.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard a voice calling to her. Shaking her head, she looked up to see Regina cradling her finger. "Huh?"

"I said I need a band aid Miss Swan, do you have one?"

"Oh, yeah, hold on" Emma reached into her back pocket and extracted her wallet, searching inside to find a band aid. "Here," She said, holding it out.

"Thank you"

Emma just nodded and tried to hold herself together. When she finally got out of Regina's office she breathed a deep sigh of relief. Knowing what needed to be done, as soon as she was outside she all but ran back to her apartment and silently hoped her mother wasn't home.

Opening the door she thanked the heavens above for giving her the chance to avoid any awkward questions that may arise due to her somewhat strange behaviour. Grabbing what she needed and stuffing various items of clothing into a duffel bag, she did a double check before grabbing a set of keys only she knew about. She quickly left a note to her family and Henry letting them know that she needed to spend some time on her own before turning towards the door.

She left the apartment without a second glance and took all the back streets, hoping not to be seen. Anybody who saw her might think that she was going somewhere, somewhere that wasn't Storybrooke, and that would raise a whole lot of questions that she wasn't ready to answer.

She came up to the back of Granny's diner and entered the kitchen, spotting just the person she wanted to see. "Rubes, I need something"

Ruby turned around to see her best friend looking at her with pleading eyes. She knew exactly what Emma wanted, so she held up a finger and smiled. "Hold on, I'll be right back" Emma waited awkwardly by the back door for her friend's return. She looked up when she saw Ruby holding out a blue food cooler. "Here, don't drink too much at once"

Emma nodded. "Thanks Rubes" She smiled weakly, pulling her into a hug.

"No problem. You need some time on your own huh?"

Emma nodded. "Yeah"

"Ok, I'll cover for you"

"Thanks Ruby"

"No problem"

As Emma left, she was glad Ruby was the only one that really knew what she was. Being a werewolf, it just came naturally to her. She had sensed what Emma was the moment the curse had broken, eventually confronting her and promising to keep her little secret. Ever since Ruby had been the one who covered for her and provided her with what she needed. It was simple, and they rarely ever talked about it, but Emma was grateful to have such an understanding friend, something that she'd never really had before.

Slipping back into the back streets, she avoided as many people as she could as she lugged the duffel bag over her shoulder whilst holding the cooler in her other hand. As soon as she reached the sheriff's station she headed straight for her squad car. She would have taken her bug but it was in the workshop having work done on it. Unlocking the trunk and putting her stuff inside she closed it and jumped into the driver's seat, ready to go. Knowing her father was inside handling things, she felt a little at ease knowing that it was left in good and capable hands.

She immediately started the car and pulled out, feeling safe enough to leave. She drove deep into the woods and finally arrived at the old cabin that Granny had given her the keys to. The old woman also knew what she was due to the fact that her senses had naturally told her. Ruby had mentioned to her that her grandmother knew, and she had told her that the older Lucas was Ok about keeping her secret, as long as she didn't kill anybody.

She immediately locked herself inside and breathed in the sweet scent of being alone and far away from any true human contact. She got to work on cleaning up a bit and then planted herself down on the sofa, her thoughts taking her away.

She'd kept what she was a secret for a long time now. And so well too. She'd been turned not long after she'd finished serving time, finally being free. Knowing she didn't really have anything to live for, no family, no friends, no job, nothing, she didn't really care what the hell happened to her. She'd learn't over time how to keep her true identity a secret from everyone around her, keeping anybody she came into contact with at a distance.

No one other than the Lucas women knew what she was. Not even her own family. When Henry had come to her in Boston, she couldn't believe it. She never expected it and she knew it was the worst possible thing that could have happened to her. That was, until he started to grow on her. Now she was stuck here. How was she going to explain what she was when they noticed she wasn't getting older like them?

She didn't even want to think about it. She'd been having this internal battle with herself ever since she'd started getting attached to the people of the town, especially the people who she now called her family.

Eventually her thoughts drifted to earlier that day. She'd had such good control of herself, it was something she prided herself on. But today, years of hard work and self control went out the window. She cursed herself for being so stupid. It wasn't as if she'd lusted for blood, but when Regina had accidentally cut herself it was if she could think of nothing but that sweet sweet substance that ran through her veins.

The image of Regina sucking on her injured finger crossed her mind and she groaned, wondering why she thought of it as attractive. Usually she wouldn't worry so much if it was someone else, but it wasn't. Of all the people it could have been, it was Regina. Her arch enemy, or so she thought.

Many thoughts crossed her mind as she tried to think about the reasons why she felt the way she did. She'd never felt this way about anyone, not in this way. The very thought of Regina made something in her mind click for the very first time. She felt her heart sink into her stomach as she realized that she was attracted to none other than Regina Mills.

That's when she realized that this was underlying, that she had been attracted to her from the very first day they met. She just didn't realize until now. When she really thought about it, trying to figure out why she was attracted to her, she realized that she was hopelessly in love with her. She certainly couldn't explain it, but she just knew. It was there, and it was taunting her. It was telling her on two separate levels that she needed the woman.

She needed her not only in a primal way, but also in an emotional sense too. The mayor could push all of her buttons and make her madder than hell, but she knew Emma in a way only she could, as a parent. They shared a son, and that's what did it for Emma. Knowing that they shared Henry, realizing that he wasn't one or the others but belonged to both of them, she sensed a bond that she hadn't come across before.

He was the thing that drew them together, and she desperately wished that she had never been changed. She would eventually outlive all of them, and she'd surely be outed to them. She hoped that day never came. She didn't think she was strong enough to handle the consequences of people finding out what she truly was.

Thoughts bombarded her and made her head pound, reminding her of her thirst. She may have broken Regina's curse, but she had one of her own that she would never break. It was with her and bound to her soul for eternity.

The thirst.

Groaning, she got up and walked over to the table where she'd placed her stuff earlier. Glancing towards the window she realized she'd been thinking for longer than she'd thought. Sighing, she turned back to the bag that Ruby had given her, finding just what she needed.

Her eyes shone exceptionally white in the moonlight as the thirst took over, like a liquid fire running through her veins, burning and clawing at her, begging her to satisfy and quench the hunger that she was flawed with for eternity.

Her movements became frantic as she tossed out the idea of pouring it into a cup. She was assaulted with her thirst, much more forceful than it had ever been before. The only time she had felt it this strong was just after she was turned. Maybe it was the realization that Regina was the person she wanted and couldn't have that spurred her on, or maybe it was the thought that she'd smelt her blood for the first time that kicked her into over drive. She didn't care. She needed blood, and she needed it now.

Fiddling with the cap on the end of the IV drip bag only served her frustration, eventually managing to tear it off and throw it down to the floor. She stumbled, dizzy from the need, and collapsed onto the small cabinet behind the sofa that she had been sitting on.

Her fangs detracted in need as she hurriedly sucked on the small tube. Hands shook as she gripped hold of the bad in her hands, squeezing as she tried to drink as much of the crimson substance as she could.

Her whole body started shaking with the need as she drank, gasping as the smooth red liquid she craved so much slid down her throat and dribbled down her chin. She hadn't fed in so long, and it had built up over time, finally gripping her whole body and creating a feeling she couldn't deny any longer. She had gone so long without the one thing she needed to survive, and she felt as if she was paying the price for it. Images of Regina crossed her mind in her haze as she desperately tried to forget it was her blood she'd rather be drinking, sucking harder on the tube as her desire grew.

Caught up in her frantic feeding, she hadn't heard the car pull up outside the cabin. Hearing a knock, she froze. Whoever was about to walk in was about discover her secret. She jumped up, blood bag still clutched preciously in her hands as she dashed towards the doorway to the kitchen.

Unfortunately for her the person had decided to come in anyway and had caught sight of her jumping behind the wall as if she was about to be caught doing something she shouldn't.

"Emma?" The voice called out.

The blonde in question twitched in anticipation as the voice of the very person she'd been visualizing of whilst feeding echoed throughout the cabin. She closed her eyes and prayed to God that she wouldn't get caught, but somehow she had a sinking feeling she would no matter what she did.

"Emma?" Regina called out again, heels clicking on on the floor as she neared the kitchen.

The blonde scuttled across the floor and hid behind the breakfast bar, her back towards the door as she wished she could be left alone.

However, Regina didn't stop. The brunette entered the kitchen hesitantly and noted the trail of blood from the sofa to where she was standing. She knew Emma was there, she had seen her. For once she actually cared about the blonde. Sure, she loved to toy with her sometimes, but she didn't want Emma to actually get hurt.

"Are you Ok Miss Swan? You left without telling anyone where you were going"

"P-Please leave" Emma gasped out, wishing for the love of God Regina would just leave so that she didn't have to see her like this. Regina frowned as she stepped further into the room.

"Not until I know you're Ok. You're bleeding"

Regina stepped forward even more and Emma tried moving, only managing to move around the corner a little, blood splattering onto the tiled floor as she tried covering her face with her free arm. The action only made Regina more curious, the brunette hearing Emma's quick breaths as she tried to turn away, her hand feebly covering her face.

"P-Please don't look at me" Emma whimpered, her sentence coming out in quick breathes.

Regina just rounded the breakfast bar even more determined. Emma crawled as fast as she could, rushing to get out of the room. As she hurried out of the room, all but tripping, her raised hand continued to poorly conceal her face as Regina followed her.

The blonde crawled along the floor, desperately trying to get away as she trailed blood along the floorboards. Regina watched as she feebly tried to hide behind the couch. Moving closer she got a better look at her, the other woman visibly twitched.

"L-Leave me alone!" She cried out, wishing that she was alone. However, she knew Regina wouldn't leave until she got answers.

"Not until you tell me what's wrong. I know I may find you annoying, but now you're scaring me"

She could see Emma tightly clutching the iv bag in her hand, both hands stained with blood, presumably from the bag. She gasped when Emma's eyes finally looked up and met hers, her pupils tinted a bright blue as she twitched under her gaze. Her chin was coated in blood and her lips were parted just enough for Regina to make out of a pair of fangs, making her gasp and raise a hand to her mouth in shock.

"What are you?" Regina gasped out, not quite believing what she was seeing.

Emma just looked up at her weakly, knowing her secret was finally out. She took as deep a breath as she could before answering softly the best she could in her state. "A vampire"

The words hung in the air as the two women continued to stare at each other, one in complete shock. Emma half expected her to run away screaming. However, Regina just stood there, not saying anything. The silence was killing the blonde.

"Regina, please say something" She whimpered, hating to sound so weak as she twitched, her thirst still demanding to be quenched.

"I-I..." The mayor stuttered, really at a loss for words. "Really?"

Emma nodded. "Yes."

"But how?"

"Regina...please...leave me alone, I need to feed!"

Regina's gaze dropped to the blood bag that she was still clenching in her hand, staining her skin even more. The brunette nodded weakly, still in shock, as she watched Emma greedily suck on the bag once more.

Emma couldn't wait any longer. She had held off long enough, and to be interrupted whilst feeding was the worst thing that could of happened. She sensed Regina turn away to give her some privacy, and she got up and walked into the kitchen once more.

She sucked about half of the bag before placing it in the fridge. She grabbed the cooler that Ruby had given her and slid that in too before closing the door, heading for the bathroom to clean herself up. When she came out Regina was seated in one of the arm chairs, staring off into nothing.

"I guess I owe you an explanation, huh?" She said, sitting down on the couch.

"That would be nice"

"OK, what do you want to know?"

"How about you start from the start?"

"Good idea. OK, so it was about a year after I had finished doing time..."

"And that's basically it, up until the curse broke."

"So you've been a vampire then entire time I've known you?"

"Yeah, pretty much"

"And no one but Ruby and Granny know?"

"Yep, and now you"

"Tell me, Emma, why are you here?"

Emma gulped, knowing that she would have to admit why she was here, all because of that stupid paper cut this morning. "Remember when you got that paper cut this morning?"

"Yes, I asked you if you had a band aid"

"Yeah, well, I kind of zoned out. It just smelt so good"

"My blood?" Emma nodded weakly. "How long has it been since you've fed on an actual human, Emma?"

"About a year" The blonde replied nervously, scratching the back of her head.

"And you've been feeding on blood bags ever since?"

"Yes" Emma sighed, hating all the questions, although she knew she had to answer them.

"How can you walk in the sunlight?"

"Rumours like that, like silver, and garlic are rumours we made up. We're not actually allergic to them, although silver is a little tingly on our skin. We don't sparkle in the daylight like that Twilight shit. That shit's just insulting"

"It was all made up?" Regina asked, genuinely curious.

Emma nodded. "Yeah."

She studied Regina for a few long seconds, wondering what the woman was thinking about. She could see that she had more questions drifting about in her brain, and she knew that the mayor was most probably working out how she was going to ask them.

"Regina?"

"Yes?" The mayor replied, breaking free from her thoughts.

"How did you know I would be here?"

"I could tell."

"But how?"

"The note you wrote for your family. Henry called me over and I told him that I would find you whilst your parents looked after him. I could tell by it that you needed to be alone, and I came here. I come here sometimes when I need to think"

Emma nodded, thinking about her family. "I'm so stupid" She groaned, her head in her hands.

Regina saw the internal struggle in the blonde and stood up, joining her on the couch. She didn't know what good her presence would do, but she hoped it would help her even if was just a little.

"Emma?"

"I'm so stupid!" She replied through her hands.

"Why?"

"Because I left my family without a word"

"That's not true"

"It is, I left a stupid little note hoping everything would be Ok. But it's not, I left for my own needs"

"You needed to feed, that's not a crime Miss Swan."

"But I left without telling anyone."

"But they don't know what you are"

"That's not the point!" Emma yelled, shooting up off the couch and walking across the room, rubbing her temples.

Regina just studied her from across the room for a few moments before getting up, not ready to let this slide just yet. She could tell that Emma was running from this conversation, and she was determined to find out why the blonde was being so stubborn.

Emma turned her back to the brunette and lent forward, resting her head on the wall. A few moments later she felt a hand on her upper arm. Turning a little, Regina was looking at her with nothing by sympathy in her eyes. For a brief moment Emma wondered if this was the Regina that she once was all those years ago when she saved her mother.

Neither knew who made the first move, but their lips met softly, Emma turning so that she was resting up against the wall. Regina's hands cupped her face as her hands found the brunette's waist, pulling their body's flush together. Their eyes closed as if in sync with each other as they kept it slow, enjoying the new and exciting feelings that were washing over them. When they pulled away for air they rested their foreheads together, only the sound of their breathing filling the otherwise silent room.

"What was that?" Emma asked, not believing that she had just kissed the one woman she never thought she could have.

Regina just sighed, her fingers caressing the sides of Emma's neck. "I don't know. It just kind of happened"

Truthfully, Regina had never felt the way she had when she'd kissed Emma. Not even with Daniel. It was as if the other woman had field her up with a warmth she never thought she'd be able to feel again, and she realized that it was something that she wanted to feel again.

Lips met lips once more, a little slower than before as if they were memorizing the way that it felt to have their lips against each other, the way that they seemed to perfectly lock together with every soft caress. When they pulled away for the second time, they couldn't help but let smiles grace their features, Regina getting a look at Emma's fangs for the first time.

Emma saw curiosity cross Regina's gaze, and knew she could see her fangs. Opening her mouth a little more, she eyed the brunette as she raised a finger to one of them, running it along the point.

Accepting that she couldn't go back on the kiss, that her and Emma were supposed to be a lot more, she went ahead, cutting her finger on purpose. She glanced up at Emma's eyes and silently told her that it was Ok. They both knew, especially Emma, that one Regina did this, giving the vampire a taste of her blood, she couldn't go back. Not now, not ever. Regina would be connected to her on a much deeper level, somewhat bound by blood. But, Regina didn't want to go back. For the first time in an extremely long time she felt like herself in Emma's presence.

Given Regina's encouraging glance, Emma smelt the fresh blood, much more appealing than the blood bag was. For once she really wished that she didn't wait so long to feed off a human. She'd held back for so long she'd started regretting it, especially lately. Just like that morning in Regina's office, she smelt the other woman's blood, this time much more appealing because she knew she could taste it.

Regina couldn't help the groan that escaped her lips when she felt Emma suck her finger, her tongue expertly licking the digit. When she slowly pulled it out of the blonde's mouth she felt the arms around her waist grip just a little tighter. When she'd retracted her finger out completely, she eyed the blonde as if expecting an answer.

"So?"

Emma just rested her forehead in the crook of Regina's neck, breathing in her scent as if to calm herself. "You taste amazing, just like I had expected."

"Really?"

Emma lifted her head to look at her. "Yes, with a hint of apples"

Before Emma realized what was happening Regina had pulled away, gripping her hand and pulling her away from the wall.

"Regina, what are you doing?"

The brunette never replied, instead walking towards the main bedroom. As soon as Emma was stood in front of her she turned around and cupped her face with her hands and pulled her in for another kiss, feeling as if she would never get enough.

Emma's hands gripped tightly at her waist as they kissed, but as much as she wanted it too, she felt selfish for wanting the brunette all to herself. Regina frowned when she felt Emma push her away and take a step back, confused as to why the blonde would be pulling away.

"Emma?"

Emma's heart sank a little at the rare vulnerability in Regina's voice, wanting nothing more than to pull her close and show her just how much she loved her, but she had to make sure they were both willing.

"Do you want this?"

"Yes"

"No, do you _really_ want this?" The blonde asked, Regina noticing her hands clenching into fists at her sides.

Regina took a step closer, not understanding why Emma's voice had taken a sudden hostile tone. "I said yes Emma, isn't that enough?"

Emma sighed, Regina surprised that she didn't flinch or shy away when she led her towards the bed where they sat on the edge together.

"It's not Regina, it's really not"

The brunette stared at her helplessly, not quite sure how to help her. Deciding to try anyway, she peeled away the hands that were covering her face and made her look at her by holding her chin.

"Why isn't it enough?"

She saw the insecurity in Emma's eyes as they looked each other in the eyes, and for the first time since Regina had known her, she saw the real Emma.

"Do you want to give yourself to me, all of you?"

Regina's finger stroked Emma's jaws as she considered what the blonde was implying, and she fully understood exactly what is was that Emma was talking about. If you'd asked her that morning if she'd kiss Emma, she would have told you you were crazy. But now, with the both of them looking directly at each other, she finally admitted what she'd been trying to deny since the very first day the blonde had arrived in Storybrooke. She loved Emma Swan, and she was ready to finally admit it to her in the form of giving herself to her.

"Yes"

"Are you sure? It's not just something simple Regina, it's a big deal."

"I'm ready Emma, it's taken me this long to admit it, but I want you, and I want you to do this"

"Ok"

Emma ducked her head and kissed her way up Regina's throat, her tongue darting out as the brunette moaned, her arms coming up to grip at Emma's biceps as she tried to control herself. She knew it was useless as she was losing her control fast, a kiss just below her ear sending her over the edge. Emma had full control of her now, and she was willing to give her the reigns, something she would never do for anyone else but her.

Emma's hands tugged the shirt out of Regina's pencil skirt and the brunette pushed the blonde to the bed, managing to straddle her once they had properly laid on the bed. She pulled away from Emma's lips and seductively unbuttoned her shirt one button at a time. The vampire licked her lips as she watched Regina's skin slowly reveal itself, wanting nothing more than to kiss it as much as she could.

Skilled hands pulled off the shirt slowly and threw it somewhere across the room before Regina turned back to Emma. The blonde gripped her hips and pulled her down on top of her, kissing her as if nothing else in the world mattered except Regina, something the brunette had never felt before. It felt foreign, but she realized it was something she wanted to continue. For once she felt wanted, and not just in a sexual way, but actually wanted. Her mother was wrong, Emma was right. Love wasn't weakness, it was strength, something she now believed as Emma finally kissed her, showing her why she was right.

They shed their clothes slowly, simply enjoying the action. When they were finally naked before each other, Emma rolled them over so that she was hovering above the brunette. She took a few silent moments to herself as she admired how Regina's short brown hair splayed out around her head, framing her well-defined face and how her skin glowed in the moonlight.

She smiled as she traced the scar above Regina's lips with her finger ever so lightly as if she was touching something that was so fragile it would break at the slightest touch. The way she smiled at her made Regina's heart flutter, something it hadn't done since Daniel. She was brought out of her thoughts by Emma's next sentence.

"You're beautiful"

The smile she got in return she had never expected to get, especially from someone like Regina, but as they looked at each other in this brief moment of silence, she realized she truly meant it. Regina was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. She was laying beneath her, offering all of herself to her, finally letting her see beneath the cold mask of the mayor she'd gotten used to every day. This Regina was different. She could tell she was willing to give herself to her, and Emma couldn't help but smile, wanting nothing more than to take that gift and honour it with her entire being.

"No one's ever said that to me before" Regina smiled shyly, not quite knowing what to say.

"Well, it's true. I think you look beautiful"

Regina was at a loss for words, instead pulling Emma in for a slow, tender kiss that seemed to take their breaths away.

Skin met skin as they moved together, slowly taking the time to explore each other's bodies. As Emma's fingers slipped inside of her for the first time, Regina let out a gasp at the tenderness in the action, knowing that she was taking it slow for a reason. As she started moving in and out, Emma kissed Regina's neck, feeling her pulse beating at a steady pace beneath her skin.

Regina knew what was going to happen and as she gasped at Emma bringing her closer to the edge, she gripped the back of the blonde's neck. Emma felt her head being kept in place and when she felt Regina clenching around her finger's, she sped up her pace. Just as the brunette fell off the edge she bit down, making her scream out her name in ecstasy.

"EMMA!"

The blonde sucked steadily on her neck as she slowly brought her down from the edge, trying to let her ride out her orgasm and make it last for as long as possible. When she felt Regina calm considerably, she pulled out her fingers and pulled away from her neck, kissing the two holes that now disturbed her somewhat perfect skin.

She just held her close as her breathing returned to normal, Regina curling into her arms and resting her head on her chest. It wasn't long before the brunette fell asleep, herself following soon after, finally feeling content with herself.

The next morning she woke up to an empty bed, but the sound of Regina moving about in the kitchen. Smiling, she stretched out in the middle of the bed, content to just lay there for a few more moments. Her thoughts drifted to last night and how for the first time since she was turned she felt ok to be herself. She found the idea of Regina being the person making her feel Ok a little strange, but on the other hand she was relieved that it wasn't anyone else. She knew she was in love with the mayor, and she was finally ready to admit that. It was also the first time since that she was turned that she felt more or less quenched, being able to focus on other things than her thirst.

When her stomach rumbled she realized that even though her vampire side was quenched, her human side was hungry from not having eaten at all yesterday. Getting up, she stretched her arms above her head and pulled on a pair of boxers and a tank top from her duffel bag before making her way out of the room.

She found Regina in the kitchen in nothing but her underwear and the sky blue button up she was wearing the day before. She lent up against the door frame and smiled as she crossed her arms.

"Are we really comfortable to be walking around in just our underwear already?" She smirked, seeing the brunette jump a little.

Regina turned around and glared at her playfully, giving Emma a good view of her bare chest underneath her unbuttoned shirt. "Do you not like it Miss Swan?" She flirted, a suggestive smile on her face. The blonde's silence was enough, the mayor smirking in victory as she turned back to the frying pan where she was making pancakes.

She jumped a little in surprise when she suddenly felt arms wrap around her waist from behind, but soon relaxed, smiling when she knew who it was.

"I do like it. Very much" Emma whispered into her ear, her hands caressing her stomach as she kissed her neck.

"Good. That's what I like to hear." Regina replied, trying her hardest to keep control of herself.

"Mmm, how are you feeling this morning?" The blonde asked, kissing the side of Regina's neck she'd fed on.

Regina gasped a little at the sensitivity of the marks, but let Emma sooth them with her kisses. "I feel good"

"Are you sure?"

Regina turned around and wrapped her arms around Emma's neck, kissing her softly. "I'm Ok" She replied softly, resting their foreheads together. "Now, go and sit at the table. Breakfast should be ready any minute"

Regina pecked her lips once more and shooed Emma out of the kitchen, the blonde grinning the entire time. As she sat down at the table and thought about the woman in the other room, she knew they wouldn't be able to go back to the way they were before. She hoped that they would become something more, but she knew they would have to talk it out before they went back into town if they were going to get anywhere.

Soon enough she served breakfast and about half way through she saw Emma freeze up. "Emma, what's wrong?" She asked, finishing her bite of pancake.

"What about my family? They must think something happened to us. Oh God, what about Henry?"

"Not to worry, dear, I called them before I started making breakfast and said we were fine, that we needed to talk things out last night and it was too late for me to come back so I stayed the night. I told them we'd be back this afternoon. I figured we could talk about what happened last night before we head back."

"Oh, good" She said, relief washing over her. "Thanks"

"No problem dear"

Emma smiled at the term of endearment as she took another bite of her pancakes. She could definitely get used to this.

When they had finished eating, they showered and got dressed before sitting next to each other on the couch, neither of them really knowing how to start. But, when their hands found each other's they smiled at one other, both giving each other the encouragement they needed. Emma was the one to speak first.

"What do we do now?"

"What do you want to do? I know your secret, but I won't tell anyone"

"I know, it's just that what do we do about us?"

"Is there an 'us'?" She asked, raising a pointed eyebrow.

Emma scratched the back of her neck nervously and tried to avoid Regina's gaze, the brunette stopping her and turning her face to look at her so that she couldn't look away. "Emma?"

"Uhm, if y-you w-want to, I mean, it's totally up to you, I wouldn't be offended if you said no..."

"Emma"

"I mean, it's Ok, I don't mind..."

"Emma" The brunette smiled, finding Emma's nervous rambling cute.

"What if my parents don't approve..."

"Emma!" Regina called, still not getting a response.

Deciding to take drastic measures, she cupped the sheriff's face fully and cut her ramblings off with a kiss. Emma's body relaxed slightly before Regina moved over and straddled her lap, the blonde's hands wrapping around her waist. When they pulled away for air they rested their foreheads together.

"You didn't answer my question" Regina smiled, her eyes closed.

"What was it?"

"Is there an 'us'?"

"What, as in like together?" Regina nodded. "Uhm, yeah, if you want to"

"I do" The brunette smile, pulling Emma in for another kiss.

By the time they had finished discussing what they were going to do, and as Emma put it 'practising to be a couple' (which was really just an excuse to kiss Regina), they left the cabin ready to face their loved ones.

They drove their separate cars back into town, and Emma parked up outside of the mayor's mansion, then getting in Regina's Mercedes as the brunette drove over to the Charming's apartment where they knew Emma's parents and Henry would be.

As they held hands tightly, Emma grabbed her duffel bag whilst Regina grabbed the cooler full of blood bags. Ignoring the looks from some of the people passing by, they made their way inside and upstairs. As they stood in front of the door they shared one last look of reassurance before knocking.

* * *

TBC?


	2. Telling

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_Happy Swan Queen week!_

_Wow, thanks guys! I never knew so many people would want SQ vampire, it's amazing! I'm so happy you all like it! Thx to everybody who reviewed and added etc. , it really means a lot so I'm continuing this story._

_I don't know how many chapters it will be, and I just want to make a few things clear; I don't update really really quick as I like to take my time so it's good enough for you guys, it's usually about a week, and most importantly, I don't ask for reviews, it's just not my style. So, don't expect me to be asking you guys to give me a certain amount so that you get the next update, I update anyway regardless of how many reviews I get._

_Now that's cleared up, enjoy the rest of the story!_

* * *

When Charming opened the door he hadn't expected to see both Emma and Regina, let alone the two of them looking at him uncharacteristically nervously. Smiling at the sight of his daughter unharmed, he ushered them in, pulling Emma into a hug before closing the door. As soon as the door clicked shut Snow rushed out from where she was laying on her and Charming's bed.

"Oh, Emma! Thank God you're ok!"

Regina rolled her eyes at the other woman as she rushed up to Emma and pulled her in for a bone crushing hug that only a mother could achieve.

"Mom, can't breathe" Emma gasped, making Regina wonder if breathing was really necessary if she was a vampire. Shaking her head of her thoughts, she looked at Snow who was looking back at her with a curious gaze.

"What are you doing here?" Snow asked as she looked over at Regina, a slight hint of accusation in her voice.

"Me and Emma have something that we want to tell you"

At that moment Emma's hand reached out and found hers, Snow fortunately missing the action.

"What is it?"

"Can we sit down?" The blonde asked back.

Snow nodded and they moved over to the table. Regina and Emma sat across from them, anxious to start.

"So, what is it?" Charming asked, placing an arm over the back of his wife's chair.

Regina and Emma glanced at each other, sharing a knowing look. Regina had told her that it was better that they did it sooner rather than later as it would only explode in their faces if they didn't. Luckily she had managed to get Emma to agree to do this, knowing that the blonde would have refused other wise.

Emma took a deep breath before looking directly at her parents. "I don't really know how to say this..." She started. Regina just grabbed her hand under the table and squeezed, sending her an encouraging smile. Emma breathed a sigh of relief and slightly relaxed. "I know this might sound crazy, and trust me, it is kinda, but what I'm trying to say is that I'm not exactly normal"

Snow smiled. "Emma, sweetie, we know. You _are_ the saviour"

Emma frowned, shaking her head. "No, I know that, but I'm not human"

Charming chuckled disbelievingly. "What do you mean? Of course you're human!"

"No, I'm not" His daughter replied, her tone and expression nothing but serious. "Mom, dad, I'm not human. I was, but I was changed. I was turned into something."

"Emma, you're scaring me"

Emma shook her head at the worried tone in her mother's voice, thinking that it was now or never. "I'm a vampire"

The blonde just sat there, slightly wincing at the thought of being rejected, a fear she'd never truly grow out of. Feeling Regina's hand she looked up at her and then over at her parents who were completely silent.

Charming just sat there in shock before they all heard a gasp and the next thing they knew Snow had fainted, her head slamming into the table. Emma winced once more as she watched Charming quickly picked her up and carry her over to their bed.

Ten minutes later Snow sat up, immediately reaching a hand up to her head and wincing at the pain from where she had hit her head on the table. Charming rushed over and cradled her in his arms as Emma and Regina hesitantly walked over, the both of them standing in the doorway. Snow looked up and remembered exactly why she had fainted.

"You're a v-vampire?" She stuttered.

Emma nodded, feeling a comforting hand on the small of her back, Regina rubbing soothing circles with her thumb under her jacket. The brunette felt Emma's muscles relax a little, the tenseness slightly disappearing.

"Yeah, I am. There's also something else I need to tell you"

"What is it?" Snow asked, still in shock.

"Me and Regina...we're..."

Regina took over and lent into her, her head resting on her shoulder as one of Emma's arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her in as close as possible.

"Together" She finished, feeling Emma's hand around her waist grip her a little tighter.

Snow gasped again and fainted for the second time in the last hour. Emma and Regina would have found it comical if it weren't about such a serious topic. When Snow woke up the second time Charming handed her a bag of ice for her head and guided her to the table, carefully helping her sit down.

"Where are Emma and Regina?" She asked as he sat down next to her.

"They went to get lunch. They should be back in a few minutes"

Snow nodded and they sat patiently waiting for the two women to return, not daring to speak about what they had just learned. It wasn't long before the door opened and Emma held it with her foot, letting Regina step in first.

"About time!" Charming laughed as he stood up to help Emma unpack the food.

Emma just smiled at her father and gratefully accepted the help. Regina kissed her on the cheek before sitting across from Snow, wondering if she hated her even more now that she was dating her only daughter of all people.

"You think mom's ok?" Emma asked, glancing over her shoulder at her mother who seemed to be sharing an intense staring contest with Regina.

Charming did the same and then turned back to where he was placing food on the plate in front of him. "I think so. Just give her time, she'll come around"

"I didn't do anything wrong did I?"

The prince turned to his daughter and smiled, pulling her in for a hug. "Emma..." He started once they'd pulled away. "You are my only daughter. And whether you like it or not, my princess, although you seem more like a prince" Emma smiled, her father joining in before he placed both his hands on her shoulders, looking directly at her. "I'm ok with that, so why shouldn't I be with this? I mean, I got a two for one right?" Emma laughed, bringing a grin to his face. "I nearly lost your mother when I didn't believe her, and I'm not about to make the same mistake with my own daughter. You may be a vampire, which I admit is a little strange, but then what isn't from where we come from?" He laughed, Emma doing the same as she sniffled a little. "And you may be with Regina, who once tried to kill us, but she's changed, and she makes you happy. And you know what?"

"What?"

"It's about damned time you two got together!" He smiled.

"What do you mean?" Emma asked, confusion knitting her brow.

"Come on, even when I didn't have my Fairytale Land memories, I knew you two were for each other."

"Really?"

"Yeah, come here"

Emma wrapped her arms around him tightly as they shared a rare father-daughter hug, the two of them content to just stay there for a little while and bask in the moment. Regina caught the exchange just over Snow's shoulder and smiled before shifting her gaze back to the woman in front of her to try and gauge what she was thinking.

When Emma pulled away Charming smiled and wiped away a few stray tears from her face with his thumbs before kissing her lovingly on the forehead. Emma smiled at her father's actions, always having wanted a dad just like him that did that all the time. Sniffling, she smiled back him widely before wiping her eyes and going back to what she was doing before.

When they were done they served the plates of food and sat down next their respective partners. Pleasant words were exchanged as they ate, catching up on various things before Snow asked what happened the night before.

"Um, you really want to know?" Emma asked nervously. Snow nodded. "Uh, ok. Last night Regina caught me in the middle of feeding and we talked it out. Then one thing led to another, and here we are"

Snow nodded, thankfully satisfied for the moment before starting up another topic, much to Emma's surprise. After lunch Emma made her way upstairs and filled her duffel bag with clean clothes and other things that she would need.

"Are you sure that you want to let me stay at the mansion?" Emma asked as she placed a shirt into the duffel on the bed.

Regina came up behind her and wrapped her arms around her waist as she rested her head on her shoulder, the two of them feeling as if the action was a normal occurrence between them even though they'd only gotten together the day before.

"Yes" She answered quietly, kissing the back of Emma's neck. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Emma just shrugged as she placed another shirt in her bag. "I don't know. I just don't want to make it seem as though we're rushing things"

"What makes you think that?"

"We got together yesterday, you really don't think we're moving a little too fast?"

Regina watched as Emma broke out of her embrace to grab a hoody. She sighed and sat down on the edge of the blonde's bed, watching her move about. "Why are you fighting this?"

"Because I've never had a stable relationship with anybody. I just don't want to mess another one up. What's between us feels different. Everything about it is different, and that's why I don't want to mess it up"

Regina stood up once more and walked over to her, her heels clicking on the hardwood floor. She grabbed Emma's arm and pulled her around to face her. She cupped the blonde's face and pulled her in for a reassuring kiss. Soon enough Emma's hands came to rest around her waist and she smiled as she pulled her closer so that they were flush together.

Emma kissed her way down her jaw and rested her head in the crook of the brunette's neck, breathing in her scent as Regina held her close.

"Thank you" The blonde whispered.

"My pleasure"

* * *

When they were ready to leave, Snow came up to the both of them just as Regina was handing Emma her jacket.

"Emma, just know that I still love you, I just need some time to process everything" She said, glancing over at Regina on purpose.

"Thank you"

Once Emma had finished pulling her jacket on Snow stepped forward and pulled her in for a hug. "I love you Emma" She whispered.

"I love you too Mom" Emma whispered back just as Charming walked up to them.

Snow excused herself and Charming opened the door for them. "I'm there for you Emma, always. If you two need anything, let me know, ok?"

His daughter nodded. "Yeah, thank you"

"No problem. Oh, and there's something else"

"What?" Regina asked.

"It's about damn time!" He grinned, making Emma laugh.

Regina joined in as they left, the door closing behind them. They put Emma's bags in the trunk of Regina's Mercedes and made their way to her mansion.

* * *

About an hour later Emma had unpacked all of her clothes into the guest room. She heard the door close and guessed that Regina had come back from picking Henry up from school. She then appeared at the top of the stairs, watching as Henry stopped in his tracks when he saw her.

"Emma?"

The blonde smiled awkwardly as she came down the stairs. "Hey, kid."

"What are you doing here? I don't stay with you until Friday"

"I know, but I'm staying here for a while"

"But why?"

Regina felt the need to step in, so she moved forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Why don't you go and put your backpack upstairs and then come back down and we'll explain"

He nodded excitedly before hugging Regina and then Emma before making his way upstairs. Regina took hold of Emma's hand and they made their way into the living room, sitting down next to each other. It wasn't long before Henry came rushing in, sitting in one of the armchairs. He frowned when he saw them both looking serious.

"Nothing bad is gonna happen is it?"

"What makes you say that?" Regina asked.

"Well, you're both in the same room together and not arguing, plus you look really serious"

"That's only because we need to tell you something important"

"Ok, what is it?"

Regina turned to Emma and gripped her hand tightly before turning back to Henry. "Last night me and Emma had a talk and realised something"

"What?"

"That we really like each other" Emma said, feeling Regina's hand squeeze hers in nervousness.

"Really?" He asked, surprised.

"Yes" Regina said.

He looked between the both of them, from one to another. "As in 'together'?"

Regina nodded again. "Yes"

He grinned as much as much as he could. "About time!"

Regina and Emma looked at each other confused before looking back at him. "What?" Regina asked, in equal shock as Emma.

"It's about time!"

"That's what my dad said!" Emma exclaimed, not believing what she was hearing.

"Wait, he did?" Regina said, turning to her.

Emma nodded. "Yeah"

"That's because he was right!" Henry happily added, the two women turning back to him. "I was wondering when you two would finally see what I've been seeing"

"What did you see?" Emma asked.

"That you two belong together" He smiled excitedly. "Is that all you had to tell me?"

Emma shook her her head of her thoughts and spoke up. "No, I have something serious to tell you"

"Is this about you staying here?" He asked.

"Kind of" She answered, feeling a hand on her lower back. She sent a loving smile to Regina before turning back to him.

"Then what is it?"

"Henry, after I gave you up something happened to me. Something that changed me. I know nothing is normal here in Storybrooke, but there are also things that aren't normal in the outside world."

"What are you talking about?"

"Henry, you have to promise me you won't tell anybody."

"I promise" He said, his tone becoming serious. He knew Emma was being serious about this, something she rarely did.

"Good. I was changed. Henry, I'm not human."

"What do you mean?" He asked, the blonde feeling Regina rubbing soothing circles on her lower back just like earlier in the day.

"Henry, I'm a vampire"

The room fell silent as she waited for his reaction. All of a sudden she was engulfed in a bone crushing hug. It took her a few moments to respond before she returned it, Regina's hand still on her lower back. When Henry pulled away, he kissed her on the cheek and smiled.

"So..." She trailed off.

He just grinned even wider. "This is so awesome! My Mom is a vampire!"

The two women smiled at him. "That's right kid"

"Can I see your fangs?!" He asked, his face the picture of excitement.

Emma glanced over at Regina, who just shrugged, before turning back to her son. "Of course. Close your eyes" Henry did as he was told before Emma spoke up once more. "Ok, open 'em up"

His face lit up at the sight and he squealed in excitement as he studied the longer than normal teeth.

Ten minutes and a whole lot of exhausting questions later Regina sent him upstairs to do his homework whilst she prepared dinner. Emma followed her into the kitchen and lent up against the breakfast bar whilst she moved over to the fridge to get the ingredients she needed.

"Henry seemed happy"

Emma nodded. "Yeah. A lot of questions though"

"At least he's not scared of you" Silence. "Emma?" She turned to see Emma with a frown across her face. Putting down what was in her hands she walked over to the blonde and cupped her face, making her look in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

Emma shook her head. "What if I lose control?"

"What do you mean?"

"You saw me yesterday. I went crazy when I fed"

Regina adopted a stern tone as she forced Emma to look at her. "Don't you even think about blaming yourself, Emma Swan. That was only because you went so long without it. I trust you to take better care of yourself from now on, and so will I. I will make sure that you stay fed so that you never harm our son"

Emma's gaze softened at the mention of Henry. "_Our_ son?"

Regina nodded, pulling her in closer. "Yes, _our _son" She replied before sealing their lips together in a loving kiss.

Things soon grew heated as hands roamed, Emma's moving just above the waistline of the skirt the brunette was wearing and touching the heated skin just below the edge of her shirt. Regina's own hands came up to grip Emma's jacket to steady herself as she kissed her hard. Tongues begged for access that was instantly granted as they bumped up against the counter in front of the window, Emma pinning Regina to it so that she couldn't escape, not that the woman wanted to.

When the mayor felt Emma's fangs rake across her skin as she kissed down her neck, she smirked a little when she remembered the conversation they'd had with their excited son not twenty minutes ago.

"Where are you going with those fangs of yours Miss Swan?" She smirked.

"Where do you want me to go?" Emma purred back, nipping at the skin and making Regina let out a moan.

"You know where"

Emma grinned at the desperation in Regina's tone. "But what about Henry?"

"What about him?"

The blonde nipped at Regina's neck again, just a little bit harder than before. "He could walk in..."

"Emma, if you don't stop stalling and feed on me you won't get any for the next week"

Emma smirked, pulling away to look her in the face. "Since when did we get to the point where you could start teasing me with taking away what I need?"

A seductive smirk crossed Regina's face along with a pointed and raised eyebrow. "Since you claimed me last night"

Emma smiled back. "Hmm, that's good enough for me"

"Only good enough?"

"Hmm, maybe really, really good" She purred, kissing her way back down Regina's neck.

Regina's eyes rolled into the back of her head as Emma's tongue flicked over the two holes that adorned her neck, earlier covered up extremely cleverly but now fully exposed to the vampire. It wasn't long before Emma's fangs sunk deep into them, fitting perfectly and on point with a precision only she could achieve.

Regina reached up to grip the back of her neck tightly as she held her in place, focusing on how it felt to have Emma feeding from her. Her skilled mouth sucked steadily and Regina couldn't help the moan that escaped her as her body relaxed under her touch.

When the blonde finally pulled away she expertly licked up the dribbles of stray blood before pulling Regina into a hug and holding her tight.

"You ok?" She asked, gripping just that little bit tighter.

"Yes" Regina's hands came up around her neck and started playing with the loose strands of hair that had made it out of the blonde's ponytail.

"You sure?"

Regina nodded and pulled her in for a kiss. "Yes, I'm fine"

Emma nodded in satisfaction and kissed her before pulling away completely and sitting up at the breakfast bar to watch her start dinner.

* * *

Emma sat down on her bed and looked out at the night-time lights of Storybrooke. She had insisted that she stay in the guest room tonight due to the fact that she still felt as if they were rushing things. She'd rushed things before and they had not ended well, teaching her to make sure that never happened again. As she thought about it, she realized that her own coping mechanism was slowly killing her.

The days events were finally catching up to her and she was starting to feel that need again. The need to keep Regina close to her and to be with her, but her human mind was interfering and telling her that it wasn't ok to be doing things so quick.

Images of the brunette crossed her mind and she cursed herself for being so indecisive about what she wanted. Who was she kidding? She needed Regina, but she couldn't stop her old habit of closing up from taking her over.

She rubbed her temples as she yawned, sleep tugging at her conciousness. She sighed, deciding to work this out in the morning. For now, she was tired and needed to rest after the long day she had.

* * *

Later that night Regina couldn't sleep. At Emma's insistence they had parted to separate rooms because she didn't want to rush things, something she had been saying all day. She wanted to understand, she really did, but she couldn't stop her mind from thinking about the blonde. It was as if she had invaded her entire being in the matter of a day, and as much as it bugged her that she needed Emma Swan of all people, she couldn't deny the pull.

Staring at the ceiling of her darkened room, she had decided that she'd had enough. She threw back her sheets and got up, heading straight for the door. She padded quietly across the hallway down to the guest room and did her best to not wake Henry up as she opened and closed the door.

Glancing over she saw Emma's sleeping form and tip toed over to the bed, standing over her for a few moments to watch the blonde sleep. She then slipped into the bed beside her. Right away she felt a hand snake around her waist, pulling her towards the blonde.

She happily moved onto her side and felt Emma pull her back flush to her front, the vampire nuzzling into her hair and placing a sleepy kiss on the back of her neck before slipping back into a deep sleep. Regina smiled to herself as her hand came to rest over the one on her stomach and she let her body relax into the bed as she felt sleep finally overcome her.

* * *

TBC


	3. Aftermath

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_Not the longest chapter ever, but I think it's good. Uploading today as it's my b-day tomorrow, so enjoy! Thx to everybody who added to favs, reviewed etc. It means a lot!_

* * *

The next day Emma woke to find a weight in her arms that she couldn't remember being there when she fell asleep. That's when she remembered Regina sneaking into her room and getting into bed with her. Grinning, she moved in closer to the brunette who seemed to nuzzle into the pillow at the movement and warmth that enveloped her. Emma pulled her close and Regina turned over so that she was facing the blonde. The next thing she knew Regina was snuggling into her chest. She chuckled and wrapped both arms around her, content to hold her close and just stay there for as long as possible.

It wasn't long before Regina started to stir in her arms, mumbling as she woke up. Emma just smiled at her cute actions and kissed her forehead. "Morning sleepy head"

"Good morning" The mayor replied, leaning up to kiss her.

When Emma pulled away she smirked. "I never took you for the type to sneak into someone's room, Miss Mills."

Regina sighed, a smile tugging at her lips. "You just had to ruin the moment didn't you?"

Emma shrugged the best she could, Regina unable to resist the slightly adorable grin plastering the blonde's face. "You love it really"

Regina just rolled her eyes as she lent in to kiss her. "You are unbelievable"

* * *

It was on Emma's lunch break when she found things were feeling strange. She had been doing paperwork all morning, and when it finally came time to get lunch she decided that she could surprise Regina by having a lunch date. Well, that was the plan until she stepped into the diner. Feeling stares on her back she continued anyway, shaking the feeling of being watched as she walked up to the counter where Ruby was waiting to take her order. The brunette's eyes lit up at the sight of her best friend as if she was dying to tell her something.

"You ok Rubes?"

"I should be asking you that."

"Why?"

Ruby studied her friends confused face for a few moments before calling one of the other waitresses to cover for her. She motioned for Emma to follow her and as they entered the kitchen Granny gave them an accepting nod as they exited through the back door.

"Ruby, what's going on?"

"Haven't you heard?"

"Heard what?"

Ruby sighed. "Who did you tell?"

"Tell what?"

"Who did you tell you were a vampire?"

"My parents and Henry along with Regina, why? What's going on?"

"Em, people are talking."

"How so?"

"Sydney's going around telling everybody you're a vampire"

"What?"

"He's been running around town telling people that you're some unholy creature of the night that must be exterminated before you spread your darkness throughout Storybrooke."

"Shit. I need to find him. Do you know where he is?"

"He came into the diner saying that and then said that he'd be rallying everybody at the town hall." Emma saw the understanding in Ruby's eyes, to which the werewolf noticed her looking at her. "Don't worry, I've been in the same position as you. Go, I'll tell you if anything else happens"

"Thanks Rubes" The blonde said, pulling her into a hug.

"No problem. Now go, I have a feeling Regina may end up killing him if she finds out what he's done"

"You're probably right about that"

"Oh, and Emma?"

Emma turned back to face her. "Yeah?"

"Don't think I don't know what you were planning to _really_ do on your lunch break" She winked, a smirk crossing her lips.

Emma just rolled her eyes and started walking away. "Whatever Ruby"

* * *

Emma swung the doors of Regina's office open without a care in search of the brunette. She found her pressed up against her desk, none other than Sydney trying to make his move on her.

Sydney snapped his head around at the sound of the door crashing open to see Emma staring at him, her fists clenching at her sides as she tried to hold in her anger. He then turned his body around completely as he blocked Regina from the blonde.

"Stay back, madame mayor! I'll protect you!"

Regina rolled her eyes as she tried to glance around at Emma. The blonde immediately saw red and rushed forward, not caring about his words, and grabbed hold of the front of his suit jacket.

He yelped as he was forcefully pulled away from Regina, and the mayor watched on as Emma proceeded to slam him up against the nearby wall with much more strength that she ever thought she could posess.

"Don't you dare touch her!" She hissed, gripping his jacket tightly.

"Or what, you're going to bite me?!"

"Emma, what's going on?" Regina asked, moving closer to the blonde and then stopping to give her some space.

Emma turned back to Sydney and looked him in the eyes. "He's been telling everyone"

"Yes, do you know that she's a vampire madame mayor?"

"As a matter of fact, I did"

He visibly paled as he turned back to Emma. "How did you find out?" Emma grit through her teeth.

"I-I w-was..."

"Spit it out!"

Regina moved forward and placed a comforting hand on Emma's bicep, feeling the muscles relax a little under touch. Emma pulled away and crossed her arms, the two other people in the room still seeing the anger clear as day plastered across her face.

Sydney gulped. "I-I saw you two together"

Regina glanced at Emma and then back at him. "When?"

"Yesterday afternoon"

"How is that possible? I was at home yesterday afternoon"

"O-oh, I know. I was c-coming to see you and I saw y-you through the window"

Emma's fangs detracted defensively as she growled at him. If there was one thing she hated, it was people who didn't value other people's privacy. In this situation, the fact that it was her and Regina's privacy made it ten times worse.

"About what?" Regina asked forcefully.

"I-I was coming to a-ask you if you wanted t-to have dinner with m-me"

"What did you see?" Emma growled.

"I saw you feeding on her, our very own mayor. Did she hurt you Regina?"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Of course not. I let her do it willingly."

"What?"

"That's right, you heard her."

"B-but I t-thought you hated her"

"I guess she doesn't after all, does she? Why did you tell everyone?!"

"Because the town deserves to know that their saviour is a fake, a good-for-nothing creature of the darkness! A mere creature that will spread her plague through our good town. Surley our madame mayor must understand that?"

"Save it Sydney, you're nothing but trouble. You always have been" Regina sneered.

"The town deserves to know!"

"You know what? I can't handle this!"

Regina watched as Emma stormed out. "Emma!" She then truned back to Sydney. "I hope you're happy. You had better hope she doesn't do something stupid!"

Emma rushed out of the bulding only to be confronted by a mob of angry townspeople. Yells were thrown her way and Whale lunged for her, knocking her to the ground. A few punches to her face and various curse words he was thrown to the side as she jumped to her feet and just ran with no idea where she was going.

Regina ran outside to find Whale getting to his feet, rubbing his jaw where Emma had managed to puch him. After sending all of them a glare and demanding where Emma had ran, she jumped into her Mercedes.

The more Emma ran, the more people she ran into. She had managed to make it to the docks when she could finally catch her breath. She doubled over and winced, reaching her hand up to her brow and pulling it away covered in blood.

"Oh, for f-"

"Emma!"

Emma looked up to see Regina swing the door of her Benz open in front of her. The blonde wasted no time and jumped into the car, Regina wasting no time in rushing off.

"What happened?" She asked, glancing over at Emma who was wincing in pain.

"Whale decided to take a few hits at me. Took me by surprise but I managed to take him by surprise and get free"

"Mary Margaret is with Henry at the mansion"

"Why?"

"We're going to take a few days away from here at the cabin."

"Ok"

Regina reached across and took one of Emma's hands in her own. "It's going to be ok Emma, I promise"

"Yeah" The blonde non-commitedly replied.

Regina frowned, vowing to rectify that once they were at the cabin and settled in.

* * *

An hour later and Henry was in the spare room of the cabin reading comics at Regina's insistence. She walked into the bedroom she was sharing with Emma and found the blonde sitting on the edge of the bed with a distant look on her face.

"Emma?" No response. She walked over to her and knelt down in front of her, taking her hands into her own. "Emma? Are you ok? Please talk to me"

Emma seemed to snap out of her thoughts and looked into Regina's eyes. She naturally lent forward and the brunette held her in her arms as she finally broke down, letting everything that had happened over the past few days spill over. Regina just held her tight and rubbed comforting circles on her back, eventually getting up to sit next to her as her previous position was uncomfortable.

"Let it out" Regina said softly, Emma sobbing even harder into her chest and making her shirt wet with her tears.

10 minutes later the blonde seemed to be more or less finished, so Regina gripped her tighter, Emma resting her head on her shoulder.

"Regina?" She spoke softly, Regina never having heard her sound so vulnerable the entire time she'd known her.

"Yes?" She replied, kissing the top of her head soothingly just like she had done with Henry whenever he was feeling down.

"What are we?"

"What do you want us to be?"

"Well, I know we decided to be together, but do I call you my girlfriend now?"

Regina smiled as she pushed a stray strand of hair out of the blonde's face. "Yes"

Emma smiled for the first time that day and lent in, Regina meeting her the rest of the way and connecting their lips together. When they eventually pulled way for air, they rested their foreheads together.

"What now?" Emma asked, her eyes closed.

"Now, we need to clean up your hands."

"Don't worry, they're already healed."

"Really?" Regina asked, surprisingly curious.

Emma nodded, holding up her hands to show her. "Yeah, I have advanced healing as a vampire. Try it if you don't believe me"

"How?"

"You got something sharp?"

"Like a knife?"

"Yeah."

"Hold on, I'll be right back" Regina rushed out of the room and come back a few moments later holding a small knife in her hand. She sat back down next to Emma and held it up. "Is this ok?"

Emma nodded. "Yep"

"What now?"

"Here," Emma held up the back of her hand in front of Regina. "Go on, try it"

Regina did as she was told and gingerly ran the knife down the back of Emma's hand, watching it as it fully healed in front of her. The vampire just smiled at her girlfriend's shocked expression.

"That's...amazing"

"It works better after I've fed. In this case I've fed twice over the past three days which means that they heal almost instantly."

Regina nodded and pulled her in for a kiss before checking her watch, deciding to change the subject to try and get Emma's mind off what had happened earlier in the day. "Do you want to come and start dinner with me?"

Emma nodded and Regina stood up, offering her hand to her. The blonde happily took it and was led into the kitchen. She sat up at the breakfast bar and watched Regina gather ingredients before deciding to get up. She walked over to her and wrapped her hands around her from behind, kissing her neck.

"Thank you" She whispered, placing another kiss to the brunette's neck.

Regina smiled. "My pleasure, Miss Swan"

Emma just grinned at the use of her 'formal' name, and a few minutes later they felt a pair of arms wrap around their waists. They both looked down to see Henry embracing them in a hug.

They glanced back up at each other and smiled, leaning in for a kiss as they wrapped an arm each around Henry's shoulders, pulling him in close.

* * *

Later that evening, when everything had calmed down and Emma shared a tearful phone call with her parents, who agreed to drive out to the cabin in the morning with Ruby and Granny, she got changed and put Henry to bed.

She lent up against the door frame and watched him sleep peacefully as the moonlight slipped in through the cracks in the curtains. As she focused on her son she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist from behind and a warmth envelope her back.

"What are you doing?" Regina asked, her head resting on Emma's shoulder as she too looked at their son.

"I wanted to make sure he was ok"

Regina nodded, knowing exactly what Emma was getting at. After all that had happened that day, she couldn't blame her. The boy was important, and Emma was determined not to let her song get caught up in her personal problems.

Emma then broke Regina out of her thoughts. "I have something I wanna tell you"

Regina's arms tightened around her waist. "What?"

"Back when he was in that sleeping curse, when I saw him laying lifeless in that hospital bed, all I could think of was that I had to do something. I was so angry, angry at myself because I didn't believe him. I was deparate"

"Emma..." Regina trailed off, knowing what the blonde was about to say.

"No, I have to say this. When I saw him like that, I thought of the one thing that could possibly bring him back. I thought he was gone, and I thought about turning him to save him. But what kind of life is this, Regina? I'm a good for nothing vampire, a creature of the darkness and I can't believe I thought that I could possibly bring my own son into that."

Regina carefully listened to the struggle that Emma was going through, and soon decided that it was enough. She turned the blonde around and cupped her face, looking deep into her eyes. She could see how much Emma regretted that thought and as much as she was shocked at the idea of Emma even considering turning their son into a vampire, she also couldn't blame her. At that point in time they were desperate, meaning they would have done anything to save him.

She slid her hands around to the back of Emma's neck and pulled the blonde in close, cradling her head as she held her close. Emma welcomed the touch and let Regina pull her close. Enjoying the warmth that Regina was providing, she buried her head in her neck, breathing in her scent, a smell she now found comfort in.

They stood there in complete silence for a few moments, just holding each other. Regina was the first to pull away, and she pecked Emma on the lips before pulling her by the hand towards their bedroom. She slipped into bed first and Emma followed. Once the light had been turned off, Regina opened her arms and the vampire happily accepted the offer, for once not being scared to be vulnerable for once. With a kiss to the top of Emma's head, they both soon fell asleep in each other's arms.

* * *

TBC


	4. What's Next?

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_Hey guys, sorry for the wait, I never usually keep my readers waiting this long! I kind of took an unexpected break from writing and got caught up on getting up to date on True Blood. So, I'm back, and I should have some more updates for you soon! Enjoy!_

_Thx to everybody who reviewed, faved, alerted etc. It's amazing!_

* * *

Emma woke up to the smell of something cooking. Sniffing at the air, she got up and padded out into the hallway and towards the kitchen. She smiled when she saw Regina cooking breakfast. Moving with a silence that being a vampire could only afford, she suddenly appeared behind the brunette, wrapping her arms around her waist from behind.

"I could get used to this" She whispered into a sun-kissed ear.

Regina smiled, feeling Emma nuzzle her head in the crook of her neck.

"Used to what exactly, Miss Swan?"

"You cooking for me"

"And what makes you think that this is for you?" Regina smirked.

Emma chuckled, brushing away the hair that was covering Regina's neck and kissing the very appealing pulse point underneath.

"I just know" She husked, Regina moaning at the feeling of her lips on her neck.

With the last bit of self control left in her Regina managed to get her mind under control and used the spatula in her hand to push Emma away, the blonde barely missing getting covered in hot grease.

"To the table Miss Swan, or you won't get any and I will give all of this disgusting, health threatening food to our son"

Emma shook her head at the sudden action of being pushed away and moved forward so that she could kiss the brunette again. After placing a kiss to Regina's cheek, the other woman threatened to hit her with the spatula again.

"_Now_ Miss Swan" Regina said sternly.

Emma just grinned as she held up her hands in surrender and backed out of the kitchen. As she stepped out Henry was walking past.

"Hey Ma"

"Hey kid"

"Did mom throw you out of the kitchen?"

"Yep, unfortunately she did. She said she'd give all of the junk food to you if I didn't leave"

Henry just grinned as he took his place at the table. Regina came out a few minutes later and served them all breakfast. Emma watched as the brunette kissed Henry on the top of the head lovingly before sitting down next to her and kissing her cheek.

Emma smiled and took a moment to survey the scene before her. A few days ago she never would have imagined that she would be sat here enjoying breakfast with both her son and the one woman she never thought she could have. She couldn't believe how quickly things had fallen into place, not that she was complaining.

* * *

Once they had all showered and changed, it was just a matter of time before the Charming's arrived. Emma was sat nervously on the sofa when a car pulled up outside. Senses springing into action faster than an human's ever could, she stood at the door, Regina coming up behind her. She reached behind and placed a warning and protective hand in front of the brunette, Regina taking it and waiting for something to happen.

Emma's body relaxed when she saw who it was. "Don't worry, it's just my parents"

She heard Regina let out a sigh of relief before she kissed the blondes cheek and went back over to the couch to sit down. As Snow and Charming started approaching Emma opened the door.

"Thank goodness you're ok!" Snow smiled, pulling her daughter in for a tight hug.

Emma returned it a little less enthusiastically than her mother and happily welcomed the less dramatic good old pat on the shoulder from her father. She then welcomed them in and they sat on the other couch. Emma sat down next to Regina and felt the brunette automatically clasp their hands together.

"Where's Granny and Ruby?" Emma asked, looking at her father.

"They decided to stay back in town and make sure that things stayed somewhat peaceful."

Both Emma and Regina nodded understandingly. "What happened after we left?" Regina asked.

"Before I tell you I want you to brace yourselves." Charming started.

"Why?"

He looked directly at his daughter. "Because its not ok"

"Please tell us" Regina pleaded.

The man nodded, knowing that he wouldn't get out of it now. "Some of the townspeople are on a manhunt for you. Sydney is leading with Gold"

Emma and Regina both frowned, Emma speaking for the both of them. "Wait, what has Gold got to do with it?"

"Sydney thought it would help his cause if he had someone strong to take you down. Apparently because you're a vampire he will be the only one powerful enough to possibly catch you. Ruby also heard rumours circulating that he wants to capture and study you because he's never actually come into contact with a vampire before"

Emma sat like a statue whilst Regina visibly paled. The mayor had never been so glad that Henry was out of the room. As much as he loved the idea that Emma was a vampire, she didn't want him knowing that his own grandfather was out to kill his mother and study her like a lab rat. She was sure he wouldn't stand for it and neither would she, prompting her to speak up.

"What can we do?"

"It's Emma call" he replied, looking at his daughter who hadn't moved at all since he'd told them.

"Emma?" Snow prompted.

Emma shook her head. "Huh?"

"It's your call. What do you want to do?" Charming asked.

"I guess I've gotta give myself up"

"What? Why?!" Regina demanded, looking at her lover in shock.

Emma shrugged. "It's not safe if you and Henry are with me. Maybe it's better if I give myself up now. Save you the pain in the long run."

"So they can do what?" Emma shrugged. "Exactly. It's not an option."

"Then what do you suggest I do? Sit around and wait for an angry mob to come and kill me?"

"How would they do that, if you don't mind me asking?"

Emma turned to her dad. "What?"

"Kill you?"

"True death. Stake me here," she said, pointing to the middle of her torso.

"We're not giving you up" Snow said, looking over to Regina who nodded in agreement. For once they agreed on something.

"Then what?!" The blonde exhaled, running a hand through her hair. At the silence throughout the room she let go of Regina's hand and stood up, storming out of the cabin.

Regina ran after her and just as the blonde was about to start running into the thick forest, she grabbed her arm, forcefully turning her around to face her. "Emma..."

"Regina, don't" She gritted out, her fangs aching in her gums, desperate to protrude from under her lips.

"No." The brunette said forcefully. "You are not running away from me. Emma, you are not going to give yourself up, not when I've just found you. Whether you like it or not we're together, and I am going to stand beside you. I know that it may be dangerous, but I know that you can protect me and Henry. Believe me when I say that it's hard for me to admit, but you are stronger than me, and I need you there to help me protect our son."

She then rested her forehead against the blondes, cupping her jaw. "I need you Emma. Please"

Regina wasn't begging, that much Emma could tell. She knew Regina wasn't one to beg for something, it was somewhat below her. However, she could sense and feel the slight desperation behind her words, picking up on how serious she was being about needing her. As much as Emma wanted to rebel against the idea of staying, she knew that she had to and protect her family.

"Ok"

* * *

When they made it back inside Charming and Snow were ready to leave.

"We have a sort of plan"

Emma looked at her father. "What?"

"Me and Mary Margaret are going to go back into town and see if we can get the mob to back down so that you can come back. If not we'll be back tomorrow morning to discuss what to do next. I know it's not much, but at least it's something"

"I know, thanks" Emma sighed, pulling both of her parents in for hugs before letting them leave. As soon as the door closed Emma sighed and made her way over to the couch, plopping down next to Regina. "So, what do you want to do today?"

* * *

Emma rolled off of Regina and lay down next to her, the brunette sighing happily as she tucked her head underneath Emma chin and strong arms encircled her waist. Emma frowned when she pulled away moments later.

"What are you doing?"

"Hold still" Emma did as she was told and held still as Regina wiped at her chin, her finger coming up covered in the very thing that sustained her and gave her life.

Emma licked it clean, sighing happily as Regina nestled her head back under her chin. "Thanks"

Regina just nuzzled her contently. A few moments later Emma had a thought and bit into her wrist, making Regina frown. The brunette sat up a little and looked her curiously.

"What?" She asked when Emma looked at her expectantly.

"Drink it before the wound closes"

Regina saw nothing but care and trust in Emma's eyes and hesitantly moved her mouth so that it was hovering above the pre-offered wrist, which was already starting to heal. With one last look up at Emma's face, she latched her mouth onto the blondes wrist and started sucking on the crimson liquid that was presented to her.

Emma heard Regina moan at some point, guessing that the brunette was somewhat enjoying it, even if she was a little hesitant at first.

When she finally pulled away she saw Emma's wrist close up perfectly right in front of her eyes before she felt a little tingle on her neck. Reaching up, she found that the holes from Emma's fangs were now gone.

"How did they do that?"

Emma just smiled. "My blood can heal you. Just don't tell that to someone like Gold. _Especially_ Gold" Regina nodded. "Oh, and don't be freaked out if you have erotic dreams about us. That's completely normal."

"What do you mean?" Regina asked, frowning slightly.

"I don't know how it works, but it gives you erotic dreams of you and the vampire you drank from. I don't know why, it just does. I used to know a guy back in Boston that was saved by a male vampire and he started having dreams of them being together, intimately. When I asked him why it freaked him out he said it was because he was straight"

"Your blood can really do that?"

Emma nodded. "Yeah. Also know that when you're in danger I can feel it now. Whenever you're scared, upset, angry, or happy I will feel it, and if you are in danger I will rush to save you almost automatically. It will be as if my heart is in pain if I don't react."

Regina nodded and kissed the blondes clavicle. After a few moments of silence curiosity got the best of her. "Emma?"

"Yeah?"

"When were you turned?"

"Five years ago, just after I got out of prison. Why?" Regina shrugged against her. "Regina..." She trailed off.

"Fine, I wanted to ask you something personal, if you don't mind me asking"

"Go ahead" The blonde urged, her fingers running through the mayors hair.

"Who was your maker?" Emma tensed a little underneath her. "Emma, it's ok if you don't want to tell me. I'm ok with that."

"No, it's ok" The vampire replied, kissing her forehead. "It's just something that I've never talked about. My makers name is Myra. She was turned in 1906. She released me last year."

"What do you mean?"

"It means that I no longer had to stay with her. It basically means that she's giving me back my own free will. She still has a bond to me and will be able to feel everything I'm going through emotion-wise, but she can't summon me any more, unless she orders me to join her once more."

"What's she like?"

"She's really nice. She can be hard headed though when it comes to things including me or my sister."

"Sister? I thought you were an only child?"

"I am. She's my sister bound in blood. She's called Ava. We call each other sister because us vampires consider turning people making a family. I was the first person that Myra turned, Ava shortly after. Myra didn't take the decision lightly, but she knew that she could give save Ava's life is she turned her. She released us both at the same time and we all went our separate ways."

"Do you stay in contact?" Regina asked, her finger training patterns on the skin of Emma's collar bone.

"Yeah. About once a month me and Ava call each other up. I also call Myra too."

"Would I have liked her?"

Emma smiled at the though of her maker and Regina meeting face to face. "Yeah, I think you would. She would have liked you too. She admires strong and independent women who don't take any crap."

After a few moments of silence Regina lent up and placed a kiss to Emma's cheek. "Thank you for telling me"

Emma smiled. "No problem" She replied, kissing her back sweetly on the lips.

* * *

TBC


	5. Heal

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_Hey guys, here's another one! Enjoy!_

_Thx to everybody who faved, alerted, reviewed; I appreciate it!_

* * *

Emma woke up with a start. Regina immediately reacted and sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes before placing a comforting hand on Emma's lower back.

"Emma?"

Emma stayed quiet as she listened to the area around them. It only made Regina more worried and anxious.

"Emma? What's going on? What's wrong?"

Emma sniffed the air and used her enhanced senses to decipher what had woken her up. She heard a noise outside and rushed to the window of their bedroom, hesitantly peaking out behind the curtain. She froze at the sight of what was out there, her mind going over what had to be done.

"Regina, get you and Henry dressed and then get out of here. Drive back into town to my parents and stay there until I call you to say its safe."

"Emma, you're really starting to scare me!"

Emma just shook her head. "Regina, you have to go. Now!"

"Why?" The brunette asked, watching as Emma carefully peaked out through the curtains again.

The blonde sighed and turned back to her briefly. "Regina..."

"No! I'm not leaving you!"

The vampire gripped Regina's shoulders tightly and looked directly into her eyes. "It's not safe for you here. I don't want you or Henry getting hurt because of what I am. I know you're strong Regina, but trust me on this, you need to go. Please, do it for me. Then I know that you're safe, both of you."

Regina sighed and let their foreheads rest together before pulling Emma in for a kiss. When they pulled away they both got dressed and with a sad goodbye to both Henry and Regina, Emma watched as they drove away from the cabin. Knowing what she had to do she stepped out into the pouring rain.

"Come out you son of a bitch. It's about time we settled this once and for all!"

* * *

It was now seven in the morning and the Charming's were having a hard time holding back a very disgruntled Regina. It had been four hours since she'd last seen the blonde and as much as she hated to admit it, she was getting scared that the vampire hadn't come back yet.

"Regina, Ruby just called! It's Emma!" Charming called out as he rushed to pull his jacket on.

Regina grabbed her coat and when Henry announced he wanted to go with them she had to force him to stay. Whatever state Emma was in she knew the blonde wouldn't want him seeing her like that.

With the promise to call as soon as they'd seen her, she and Charming both left the apartment. They rushed into the centre of town and saw a crowd surrounding Granny's. Charming pushed through them and Regina stayed close as Granny let them into an empty diner.

"Where is she?" Regina asked, worry tinting her voice.

"In back. Ruby's with her now" Granny said as she walked alongside the brunette.

Regina hurriedly made her way into the back, Charming and Granny hot on her heels. She gasped and dropped down next to Ruby who had Emma's head in her lap. The taller brunette looked up at her best friends lover helplessly and carefully helped to place Emma's head into her girlfriends lap as she knelt down.

"What happened?" Regina asked, looking down at Emma's face. The others knew that Regina wouldn't stop until she found out what had happened to the vampire. The mayor snapped them back into reality. "Don't just stand there, tell me!"

Ruby sighed and rubbed her forehead. "She knocked on the back of the door just as we were about to open. I was out here in the back getting something when I heard a noise. I then found her leaning up against the door almost ready to collapse. When I helped her inside she collapsed and I waited here with her whilst Granny called you."

"So you don't know anything about how she got here and how she got hurt?"

Ruby shook her head. "No"

Regina sighed, looking down at her lover. Emma was covered in scratches and bruises, blood coating most of the skin that was visible to the eye. Her clothes were torn and bloodied and she could see large wounds underneath the large tears in her shirt. She sighed helplessly.

"Regina, what's wrong?" Ruby asked, unable to keep the worried tone out of her voice.

The brunette surveyed her lovers body over and over, making her more and more confused. "She's not healing! Why isn't she healing?! We need to get her to my mansion. Maybe we can treat her there and she can feed."

"From who?" Ruby asked in confusion.

Regina looked straight at the other brunette before glancing up at Granny and Charming before looking back at Emma's beaten face. "Me"

A few minutes later Charming had pulled his car around to the back of the diner and they had gotten Emma inside. Regina climbed into the back whilst he then rushed them to the mansion.

"Why aren't we taking her to the hospital?" He asked as he anxiously turned another corner.

"Because she can't go there, she shouldn't want to. She's a vampire, what do you think they're going to do when they get their hands on her when she's this weak? She's hurt and she needs to be protected."

Charming was about to reply when Emma groaned in Regina's arms. The blonde tried to move but was stopped when Regina tightened her embrace a little. Emma, don't try to to move"

"R-Regina?" Emma croaked, looking up at Regina as she finally opened her eyes for the first time.

Regina smiled sadly as she brushed stray strands of blood and sweat matted hair away from her face, also noticing Emma's fangs glinting in the light of the car. "Hey" she whispered, a stray tear running down her cheek.

Emma reached a painful hand up to her cheek and Regina immediately took a hold of it to support it as she used her thumb to wipe the offending tear away. The vampire smiled painfully. "Don't cry"

Regina sniffled and smiled, nuzzling into Emma's hand. She bent down and kissed her on the forehead.

"I-Is H-Henry ok?" The blonde croaked, her energy fading fast.

Regina nodded, keeping her face close to her lovers. "Yes, he's safe"

"G-good."

Another tear ran down her face as she watched Emma slip back into unconsciousness. She smiled sadly as more tears rolled down her cheeks, leaning forward and kissing her forehead sweetly.

It was then that Charming finally pulled up outside of her mansion. He rushed out and helped Regina get her out of the car. Regina then watched as he picked up his daughter in a fireman's carry and took her inside the house. He placed her on Regina's bed and called Snow and Henry. Once the others were on their way to the house, Regina went about changing her girlfriend into clothing that made it easy to access her injuries.

Snow rushed upstairs to help Regina whilst Charming tried to restrain Henry. When Snow saw the sight of her daughter laying lifeless and injured on the bed she gasped, a hand coming up to her mouth in shock as she froze. Regina glanced up at her and for once she wasn't hostile towards her, the main reason being that a woman they both loved very much in very different ways was laying hurt on the bed before them.

"What can I do?" The pixie haired woman asked as she steeled herself, her old fairytale land personality showing through and somewhat taking Regina by surprise.

"Help me clean the wounds. I'll then try to see if she can feed from me."

Snow nodded. "What do we need?"

"There's some fresh towels in the bathroom and there should be a basin under the sink"

Snow nodded once more and grabbed what they needed. Soon, they were working together to clean as much of Emma as they could. It wasn't until they were nearly done when Snow said she would finish the rest so that Regina could go and talk to Henry.

Not thinking, she rushed downstairs still covered in Emma's blood and found Charming hugging Henry on the sofa in the living room. Henry jumped up but froze when he saw the sight of his mother.

"Mom? Are you ok?"

Looking down at herself she realised she was covered in Emma's blood. She mentally scolded herself before looking back at her son. "I'm ok, Henry."

"Then why are you covered in blood?"

"This isn't my blood"

"Is it Emma's?" He asked, Regina noticing that he was starting to get more and more anxious by the second.

Regina nodded slowly, moving towards him with her arms open. "Yes. Henry I need to you to calm down right now."

"But she's alive isn't she? She can't die because she's a vampire right? You have to heal her!"

Regina sat down on the sofa next to him and grabbed his hands in her own, Charming excusing himself to the kitchen. Regina sighed as she tried to figure out the best way to tell Henry the next part of her plan.

"Yes, I will, but you can't be there"

"What? Why not?"

"Because you might not like what you see. Emma's hurt badly Henry, and she needs blood to survive. If she doesn't feed she might die, I don't know. We don't know what's happened to her and we don't know if its killing her, so I need to give her my blood to make sure. I need to let her feed, but you're not ready to see that"

"But I saw her fangs!"

Regina nodded as she stroked some stray strands of hair away from his face. "I know, but you haven't seen her feed, and I don't want you to see her in her current state feeding from me. She's done it already, but this time will be different. She's feeding to save her life. Can you understand?" She asked hopefully.

She watched as he carefully contemplated it for a few minutes before nodding. "Ok"

Regina smiled and pulled him in for a hug before leaving to go back upstairs. When she entered her bedroom Snow was just finishing.

"Did you talk to Henry?"

"Yes. He was anxious but he said that it was ok for me to come and feed her." Regina replied as she knelt down next to Snow.

"How do you think to happened?" Snow asked as she surveyed Emma's beaten body.

Regina shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe she can tell us when she's fed. Do you want to be here for that?"

Snow's answer was already decided. "Yes. You need someone here in case she gets carried away"

Regina nodded in understanding and went into the bathroom to change. She pulled on a tank top she rarely ever wore and came back into the room with her hair up in a rare ponytail. She wanted to make sure it was as clear for Emma as possible. She knelt down next to her lover and prepared herself both physically and mentally.

Snow watched as Regina lowered her neck to the blondes mouth. If Emma wasn't so hurt she would have let her feed from her wrist, but something told her that for this it wouldn't be enough.

The vampire reacted surely enough and her brain kicked into basic gears to make her move. Her primal side took complete control of her actions and told her she needed to feed to survive, the pulse point guiding the blonde's movements. It called to her and broke through the fog that was covering her brain, making it the only thing she could see and focus on.

The two women watched as a previously unconscious Emma sat up a little, her gaze solely on Regina's offered neck. They could see that she was controlled by her primal urges, but in a split second Emma managed to break free of her animalistic hold and speak to them as herself.

"Regina, a-re you sure?"

Regina smiled and looked down at her. "Yes, feed Emma."

The blonde took a few moments to look into Regina's eyes and saw nothing but complete seriousness. With the conformation she slipped back into her primal self seamlessly. The two other women heard an audible click and her fangs appeared, seemingly glinting in the light of the room.

Regina moved in closer and felt Emma drag her nose up the length of her neck, smelling the sweet scent of her lover. Fangs raked across the rising and falling points of the skin, making Regina grit her teeth as she tried to suppress a moan.

Regina whimpered when sharp fangs finally pierced her skin, immediately drawing the sweet blood that Emma so desperately craved. Snow jumped a little at the sight of Emma so suddenly making a move, but soon relaxed, entranced at how she was watching something she never would have thought existed.

Regina fell into the action, this being her third time with Emma feeding on her. Steady sucks coaxed her into a strange sense of comfort and peace as her hands came up to cradle Emma's head, keeping the vampire in place. Emma's arms soon found their way to Regina's waist and like a cat, her hands clenched and un-clenched as she sucked.

When she finally pulled away, her lips tinted with the very essence that sustained Regina, she bit down on her wrist to let the brunette recharge a little for the amount of blood that she'd taken from her. Snow watched as Regina lowered her mouth to Emma's rapidly healing wrist and sucked on it, taking in her healing blood.

After Regina had pulled away Emma's arm healed completely and once Snow helped her onto the bed next to her daughter they both collapse, needing their rest. Taking one last look at the cute sight before her, she clicked the door shut and made her way downstairs to tell her husband and her grandson what was going on.

Back in the bedroom, as soon as the door clicked closed Regina turned over and snuggled into Emma's side, feeling the blonde wrap her arm around her and kiss the top of her head. With a sleepy smile Regina felt the vampire tuck her head under her chin. With one last deep breath in of Emma's scent she snuggled into the blondes neck and instantly fell asleep.

* * *

TBC


	6. The Plan

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_Here you go guys, I know you've been waiting but I wanted it to be good instead of short and rushed. Just a quick note; updates will be less frequent, but only for the good of the story and because I find it hard juggling updating two stories at once. With that said, enjoy this chapter!_

_Thx to everybody who faved and reviewed regardless of me saying I was going to take longer, I really appreciate all the love! :D_

* * *

When Regina woke up she found herself in the same position as when she had fallen asleep. Blinking her eyes a few times she pulled her head back to look up at Emma, who was still fast asleep next to her. Smiling, she lent forward and started feathering kisses all along her jawline.

Emma groaned when she felt lips connect with her skin and Regina saw her grin when she kissed the vampire's pulse point. The brunette made a mental note to ask about doing something there later on. For now, she focused on what she was doing.

She pulled away and lent up on an elbow to look down at the vampire who was smiling to herself. "Are you feeling better?" She asked, finding that Emma's skin was now in perfect condition just like it was before she left the cabin.

Emma nodded as she blinked away sleep. "Much. Thank you."

Regina smiled back, seeing the seriousness behind Emma's eyes, knowing just how much the vampire appreciated what she had done for her. It wasn't something that she took lightly. Emma had always been careful of whoever she fed on and she tried to avoid it at all costs, unless it was needed, like this morning.

She reached her hand up behind the brunette's head and pulled her in close, kissing her forehead.

"My pleasure" Regina whispered as she cuddled back into the blonde, her hand resting on her chest.

After a few moments of content silence Emma decided to speak up. "I guess you want to know what happened huh?"

Regina nodded. "Yes"

Emma could sense the underlying worry in her voice and knew that the brunette had been worried when she was told to come back to town. It was then decided that she would tell her everything. But she didn't have a chance to when they heard a knock at the door. Sighing, Emma listened to her mother.

"Emma, Regina... dinner's ready"

"Ok" The blonde replied. "We'll be down in a minute."

"Good."

When she heard the footsteps disappear down the stairs she turned slightly and kissed the top of Regina's head, sighing. "I guess we'd better get down there"

"Yes, I think we must" Regina replied, sitting up. "Maybe you could tell me after dinner?"

Emma nodded as she sat up, stretching her arms out above her head. "Yeah"

Regina smiled and inched forward, connecting their lips together. The vampire smiled back and Regina caught sight of her protracted fangs. Emma just smirked and the brunette shook her head and she rolled her eyes, standing up and offering a hand to her lover.

Emma happily took it and a few moments later Regina heard an audible click, Emma's fangs detracting back up into her gums. Squeezing Regina's hand tightly within her own she sent the brunette a comforting smile and kissed her on the side of her head.

Once dinner was done and Henry had been sent to bed, Emma decided that it was time to tell everybody what had happened that morning. Once everyone was comfortable in the living room Emma began.

"Ok, so this morning, I woke up when I heard something outside. I was listening out for Gold and my hearing picked him up not too far from the cabin. I knew he wanted me but I couldn't let him have Regina or Henry, hence the reason I made them leave. I couldn't put them in harms way" She said, glancing over at Regina, who placed a comforting hand on her knee.

"What happened next?" Charming asked.

"Once Regina and Henry were leaving, I went outside and called him to show himself. When he did he immediately started thinking he was going to win"

* * *

_"Come out you son of a bitch. It's about time we settled this once and for all!"_

_The forest seemed to stop, nothing but silence surrounding the vampire._ _All of her senses were on high alert as she surveyed the area around her. The wind rustled through the trees above and if it weren't for her hyper-sensitive hearing she would have missed the crunch of a twig under a shoe a way in front of her._

_Her vision locked in on the direction she had heard the sound and she took a deep breath as she tuned herself into her abilities. She picked up on the figure moving in the dark and her body tensed, fangs protracting out of her gums with an audible click._

_Soon enough the figure moved into the light, making her growl low from her chest._

_"Gold" She snarled._

_The man just laughed as he studied her; the fangs, the posture, the way her face portrayed_ _the characteristics of someone who was tapping into the very nature of the forest around them. He found it amusing that she was here without any back up, willing to go up against him alone, Rumplestiltskin. Maybe she was much more stupid than he originally thought._

_"Miss. Swan, or should I say 'vampire Swan' from now on?" He laughed._

_Emma snarled once again, already sick of his attitude. "Why do you want me?"_

_"Simple Dearie, you are something I have never come across before, a precious specimen I do like to think that I am a procurer of 'rare' items. You have seen this first hand I bottled what couldn't be bottled, 'True Love', thanks to your parents, and now I have them to thank for giving me another rare item: you."_

_"I'm not an item for you to 'collect'! I'm a person!"_

_He laughed, gripping his cane in his hands. "Uh, no, you're not Dearie, you're a vampire, and unfortunately, I would like to keep you for my own and find out what makes you so unique"_

_"I will never let that happen and you know it."_

_"We'll see about that" He smirked, his face turning serious as he held out his hand, a large fireball hovering just above it._

_Emma jumped out of the way quickly, managing to dodge it just in time. She pulled herself to her feet and readied herself for his next attack._

_Another fireball headed her way and she dodged again, using her vampire speed to rush behind him and kick him to the floor. When he recovered he glanced up at her with a smirk on his face._

_"You're gonna wish you didn't do that Dearie"_

_"Why? You gonna hit me with your cane?" She grinned._

_"Something like that" He shrugged, standing up and grabbing it._

_Emma got in a few punches before he managed to somehow get the upper hand and start beating her with it. The sharp end cut her face and arms, managing to cause a large gash across the left side of her neck. When her skin tingled a little in pain she realized that it was made of silver._

_She didn't have time to think before he had her by the neck, the cane pinning her down. She gripped it hard, trying to fight him off without any luck. He laughed as he reached into his pocket and grabbed a bottle of some sorts. He laughed like a mentally insane old man before unscrewing the lid and letting it drip into her fresh neck wound which hadn't healed yet due to the fact it had been caused by an object made of silver._

_She yelled as the shiny liquid inside the bottle dripped into her wound, hands gripping tightly onto the cane that was holding her down._

_"Fuck!" She cried out, a tear rolling down the side of her face due to the agony she was being forced to endure. "What are you doing to me!"_

_Gold just laughed as he watched her squirm in pain at his hands. "You don't like it? I've been working on it ever since I found out you were a vampire" He smiled._

_"What is it?" She gasped out, the liquid seeping into the wound._

_"A highly concentrated mix of liquid silver."_

_"Oh God!" She gasped, really wishing that the pain would stop knowing there was a chance he would just let her lay there in pain as he watched just for fun._

_Seeing a chance as he momentarily let his defences down to watch her, she used her feet to kick him to the side. She pulled herself to her feet as she clutched at her neck, the silver still burning the wound. She could feel that it wasn't healing, and she felt it already starting to seep into her blood stream._

_Knowing she didn't have time to waste, she lunged for him and managed to push him to the ground, standing over him and punching like her very life depended on it. Her vampire instincts kicked into overdrive and all she could think about was defending herself by any means necessary. Even if that meant going to extremes._

_When he stopped resisting she pulled back, panting heavily. She looked at the wounds on her hands and shook them out a little, pulling herself to her feet. She stumbled back towards the cabin, only to trip on a large fallen tree branch. She cried out in pain when she realised that all of her wounds were still there, making it harder for her to move as the silver started taking the desired effect in her system._

_As she lay there panting, looking up at the sky, the only thing she could think of was Regina and how mad she'd be if she didn't get back. Then her thoughts drifted to Henry and how upset he would be if she didn't fight to get back to him or his other mother._

_So, taking a deep breath she pushed herself up onto her elbows and glanced behind herself. Gold was still laying out cold._

_'Serves him right for messing with a vampire' She internally smirked, using all of her strength to push herself up onto her feet._

_She took a deep, meaningless breath and pushed herself forward towards the cabin. Once inside she rushed to the refrigerator and grabbed one of the blood bags that had been left there. She unscrewed the top desperately as she started to shake with need and exited again, ready to make the long walk back into town._

_She drank the blood every now and again as she walked down the side of the road, not caring if anybody saw her. She was pretty sure the whole town knew what she was by now and she would be damned if she started caring what they thought when she needed to get back to her family. As she took another sip she knew that the bag would do for now until she got back to Regina, she just needed to keep her strength up, something that the damned silver was taking from her right now. 'Damn Gold and his stupid collections' She snorted, taking yet another painful step as she neared the outer limits of town._

_As she started to pass houses and buildings she thought about how she would explain what happened and if she would make it at all. That was until she realized that the blood bag she was holding was more or less empty. Stopping, she sucked all of the remaining red liquid out and threw it to the side of the road as she started walking once more. Usually she would have been against littering but right now she just didn't care. She needed to get back into town and she desperately needed to heal. She didn't know what the hell the silver would do to her in the long run, but she had to put a stop to it before it harmed her body even further._

_Her vampiric instincts told her that it was very bad, literally burning under her skin. As she made her way down the back streets of Storybrooke, she neared the exit to Granny's. It was still dark when she plopped herself down on the back step of the diner, so she just rested up against the door, closing her eyes as the pain took a more permanent hold over her body._

_She would had gone to the mansion, or even her parent's apartment, but she just knew she didn't have the energy. Even if she tried she knew she would pass out in the middle of main street for everyone to see and it wouldn't be long before someone like Sydney or Gold would come to 'collect' her and tell the town why she needed to be 'eradicated'._

_Wincing, she let the darkness take over as thoughts of Regina coursed through her mind. When she woke up she felt the sun slightly burning her even under the clothes she was wearing. Likely due to the silver now running through her. Her body felt extremely heavy as she reached up to the door. She hit it as hard as she could and a few moments later Ruby was swinging it open._

"_Emma!" She yelped, kneeling down next to her. Granny entered the kitchen and Ruby yelled. "Granny! It's Emma!"_

* * *

"And that's how I ended up at Granny's. I passed out at the doorstep and then Ruby found me"

"What are we gonna do about Gold?" Charming asked.

Emma shrugged. "I don't know, and I don't wanna think about it right now. I wanna start fresh tomorrow" And with that Emma got up and left the room, clearly not wanting to talk about what she'd been through any more.

When Regina had said goodbye to Snow and Charming she went upstairs to find Emma in the shower. She silently slid into the room, got undressed and joined her. Emma flinched a little before relaxing at the feeling of Regina behind her, feeling the brunette place a soothing kiss to the base of her neck.

She turned around in her arms and let the human embrace her, not wanting to talk about what she'd been through. They hadn't really gotten a moment to themselves since she had got back and although Regina wanted her to talk about what she went through, she already knew better than to push the blonde into something she didn't want to do. For now, she accepted the fact that all Emma wanted was comfort, and they went to bed with the vampire snuggled in Regina's arms.

* * *

The next morning when Emma woke up she could feel that the other side of the bed was empty. Blinking her eyes she sat up, looking around the room. She visibly relaxed and got up as quietly as she could. She walked over towards the chaise lounge and kissed Regina on the head. Regina jumped a little but smiled when she looked up to see Emma.

"Good morning"

"Good morning" Emma smiled back, Regina cupping her jaw as she lent in for a kiss. "What are you doing?" The blonde asked once she'd pulled away, looking down at a book that was placed between Regina's legs.

Regina glanced down at the book before looking back up at Emma, her hand resting around the blonde's waist. "Research"

"About what?" Emma asked as she sat down on the end of the lounge.

"Vampires. This book is a book of supernatural beings from my land. It contains things that were only ever thought to be myths."

"Until now" Emma finished.

Regina nodded. "Yes, until now"

Emma waited for a few moments before speaking. "Can I ask why?"

"I need to know what can hurt you"

As the vampire looked into Regina's eyes she could see that after yesterday she was worried about what had happened to her and how Gold had managed to overpower her. "Regina, you know you can just ask me right?"

"Yes, but I wanted to see if this book had anything useful first"

Right as Emma was about to open her mouth and speak the doorbell rang. "Got it!" Henry called from downstairs.

Emma looked at Regina. "Are we expecting anyone this morning?"

"No, why?"

They both shared a look before immediately getting up and heading downstairs. The door was open and there stood Ruby and her girlfriend Belle.

"Emma! Thank God you're ok!" Ruby squealed, pulling Emma into a bear hug.

"Uh, yeah" The blonde said confused as the taller woman let her go. The blonde then glanced back over to Regina who was stood on the last step of the stairs. "Thanks to Regina." The two shared a smile before looking back at Ruby. "Um, not to sound ungrateful, but what are you doing here so early?"

"Oh!" Ruby grinned, suddenly remembering something. "Belle here has some important information"

"Ok, what kind of information?" Emma asked, feeling Regina move behind her and place a hand on the small of her back.

"Let's just say it's something that could mean Gold gets his way" Belle said.

Emma and Regina shared a look before the vampire looked back at her friends. "Come in, I'll call my mom"

As Ruby and Belle walked past them into the foyer, greeting Henry, Emma looked at Regina who was about to protest. "Before you say anything, there's no way you can't involve my parents, and after yesterday we desperately need a plan."

Regina pouted before sighing, her whole body relaxing. "Fine"

Emma grinned. "Come on, let's get dressed and have breakfast"

* * *

When everybody was gathered and full from breakfast, the dishes cleaned away, they decided to get on with why they were all there. Any other day Emma would have hated having so much attention but with what was happening, she really didn't want to turn away help when she was being threatened with torture or even worse, the true death.

"Ok, so what's going on Belle?" Emma asked as they still sat at the dining table. Snow and Charming couldn't help but be reminded of their time being king and queen sitting around a table of their most trusted advisor's, except this time they had their daughter, Regina, and Belle with them, Ruby having always been there from the beginning. Luckily Henry was upstairs playing video games.

Belle took a deep breath. "Earlier this morning I was on my way to Granny's to meet with Ruby when I overheard Gold in his shop. He was yelling about something so I rushed to get Ruby and she listened in. Gold's working on something to hurt you. He said that he had tried to pour silver on you but he got overpowered by you anyway. Then there was something else"

"Like what?" Regina prompted, her hand going to Emma's knee under the table when she felt the vampire's tenseness roll off onto her.

Belle sighed and rubbed her temples, Ruby placing a comforting hand on her lower back. "We didn't get a look at who he was yelling at, but he said something about changing the contents of a tranquillizer gun. Something about replacing the contents with pure liquid silver and using it as a 'vampire tranquillizer'."

Emma and Regina glanced at each other warily before turning back to the others. "Who do you think it was he was talking to?" Emma asked.

Belle shrugged. "I don't know."

"I think I may know" Ruby piped up, earning the gaze of every single pair of eyes around the table.

"Who?" Regina asked.

"Sydney"

"You think they could be working together?" Charming inquired.

Emma shrugged in her fathers direction. "Could be. It would make sense though. They both hate me and want me to be held responsible for being what I am, which I can't help. I mean, Sydney exposed me to the whole god damn town, and Gold wants to collect me like a specimen for whatever the hell you call his pawn shop collection."

"What do we do?"

Regina looked at Belle before looking back at Emma expectantly. "She's right. It's your call. What do you want to do?"

As Emma looked at her lover she knew she didn't really have the time she wanted to think about how she wanted to play this. Not one to waste time however, she came up with an idea, hoping that they wouldn't hate her for it.

"We have to lure him out"

"But how?" Charming asked.

"By acting as if nothing has happened" She replied calmly, feeling everybody's tempers flare at the idea.

"But Emma, the whole town is after you!" Snow protested.

Emma looked at her mother seriously. "I know, but I can't just stay cooped up in this mansion for God knows how long! I need to deal with this. I know you guys don't like the idea, but you don't know what I'm capable of. I'm a vampire and I can handle my own. Plus, I know you guys won't let me out of your sights. My dad works with me for God sakes!"

Regina squeezed her knee, calming the blonde down before looking at everybody else. "As much as I hate the idea I have to agree with Emma on this one. I can't just keep her here for the rest of time, it wouldn't be fair to her. We need to deal with Rumplestiltskin and Sydney before it gets out of hand and they actually do some real damage."

"But how would we do this?" Ruby asked.

Emma spoke up. "We go back to our everyday routines but we keep an extra eye out. We need to be vigilant. When he makes his move, that's when we strike back. We have the upper hand here as he doesn't know we know about his plans. Tomorrow I will go back to work and deal with anybody who confronts me. It will only be a matter of time before he shows his face."

* * *

The next day they set Emma's plan in motion, no matter how much some of them didn't like it (namely Regina and Mary Margaret).

Emma and Regina dropped Henry off at school, greeted by Mary Margaret, and then went to Granny's to get their morning coffee together. It was strange in a way because they had gotten together so so quickly that they hadn't really had time to get into an everyday routine. Regina however, decided that even though the situation with Gold was more important, they needed something to get their mind off of it if only for a little while. That meant grabbing coffee with her lover before exiting Granny's.

She lent forward as they stopped by the entrance, surprising Emma by connecting their lips together. Even though the blonde had thought the former queen to be discreet with her public affection, due to the current circumstances she was throwing that cautiousness out of the window.

When she pulled back she smiled at the blonde's dumbstruck expression. "Don't act so surprised dear, it was just a kiss"

"Yeah, but-"

She reached out and placed a gloved finger up to Emma's lips to stop her from completing that sentence. "I know, but with everything going on I don't care. I love you Emma and if people don't like it they will just have to deal with it"

"So you're not afraid of what people will think about you kissing a vampire in the middle of town where they can all see?"

Regina smiled. "Not at all. I was cautious at first when people started to find out, but right now I'm not taking anything for granted. Now, it's about time we both get to work. Make sure to give my regards to your father and he can thank me for those disgusting fattening doughnuts the next time he sees me." She smirked, motioning to the bag in the vampire's hand.

Emma broke out of her stupor and grinned. "Ok, madame mayor, I will make sure to tell him." Regina eyed her, as if expecting something else. "What?" The blonde asked, confusion etched across her face.

"What are you supposed to do?"

"Oh, text you on my break"

"Good, now go. I wouldn't want my town's sheriff late for work now would I?"

Emma grinned, kissing her girlfriend before hugging her and pulling away, heading for the station. When she made it she found her father sat back at his deputy's desk, his feet resting up on the table. Emma grinned, placing the box of doughnuts down on the table next to his feet.

"Courtesy of Regina. She said you can thank her the next time you see her. If I were you, I would treasure each and every one in that box."

"Why?" He asked in confusion as he reached for the box. Emma slapped his hands away.

"Because that's probably the only thing Regina will ever buy you"

"Good point"

"Plus, don't you dare touch them until our break. I'm sure mom made sure you had breakfast before you left for work right?" She grinned, placing her coffee down on her desk.

"Yeah"

"Same here, Regina's a sucker for making sure Henry has breakfast every single day and she made sure to rope me in. No touching until our break"

"Wait, she already got you?"

Emma nodded as she sat down, exhaling loudly. "Oh yeah"

Charming just shook his head, his gaze falling on the pink and blue doughnut box in front of him, his thoughts focused on nothing but the sweet treat that was inside.

* * *

Ruby dropped by during Emma's break to make sure that she was ok and found the blonde texting on her phone with her feet up on the desk whilst Charming stuffed a bright pink doughnut into his mouth. Shaking her head and rolling her eyes she walked into the blonde's 'office', placing a to go bag down on the table along with a hot cup of fresh coffee.

"Hey Em's"

Emma glanced up and smiled at her best friend. "Hey Rubes. Thanks for the food" She said, finishing off her text and sitting up as she reached for the bag.

Ruby just grinned as she watched the blonde open the bag. "No problem."

Emma smiled widely as she reached inside and pulled out a large bearclaw, Ruby saying something. "Granny had it made especially this morning for you"

"I'll make sure to say thanks the next time I see her"

Ruby just nodded and sat down on the edge of the desk, watching as Emma took a large bite of the pastry, the vampire rolling her eyes in pleasure. Both of their over-sensitive hearing kicked into gear and they snapped their heads up at the sound of heels click clacking against the polished floors of the station.

Emma visibly relaxed at the sound and smell of her lover just as she was about to turn the corner. When Regina came into sight she smiled at her lover before glancing at Ruby and then at Emma's so called 'deputy' as he started devouring yet another doughnut. She rolled her eyes like Ruby had as she continued into Emma's office and pecked the vampire's lips before resting up against the vampire's desk.

She was just about to greet her when another set of familiar footsteps sounded down the hallway and Mary Margaret came into sight.

"I guess everybody's concerned" Emma sighed, taking another large bite of her bearclaw.

Her mother smiled at her before her gaze fell to her husband. With a nod to her daughter she walked up to the oblivious deputy, the other's watching on with knowing smile's on their faces. She swatted him over the head and he nearly choked in surprise.

"What was that for?" He whimpered, rubbing the back of his head.

"For excessively snacking. What have I told you about doughnuts at work?"

For a moment it was silent before Emma stood up, running down the hallway without a word. Their senses on high alert, everybody could tell something was off and ran after the blonde vampire who had just reached the doors. She rushed out as the others joined her and she growled.

"Gold"

* * *

TBC


	7. Caught

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_Hey guys, enjoy this update! :)_

_Thx to everybody who reviewed, added to alerts and faved :D_

* * *

_"Gold"_

Emma stepped forward, including Ruby, the two supernatural creatures giving off an air to the others that said stay back. Gold smirked when he saw Ruby's eyes flash gold and Emma's fangs audibly click.

"My, my, Dearie. It seems as if you have amassed a following. Are you sure they will want to stay with you when they find out your true nature?"

"This is my true nature"

"Is that so? Why don't you tell them how you beat me unconscious"

Emma smirked, knowing she had the slight upper hand. "They already know. I told them everything. You really think my family would settle for any less? They were bound to get it out of me eventually."

He chuckled to himself, leaning all of his weight onto his cane as he held it out in front of him with both hands. "No, I suppose they wouldn't. But then again, your family has always been the ones to put their trust in the most unstable of things. What about your arrival in this land, hmm? I seem to remember that they were fooled, and look how that turned out! You're now a vampire because of it and as I understand you haven't had an easy life"

Emma stepped up to him so that they were nearly nose to nose. "Don't you dare talk about them like that, especially my past because you don't even know the half of it!" She growled.

He smiled. "Oh? And you expect that to stop me? I know everything about everyone Miss Swan."

"Yeah, and look how that turned out. I fooled you into thinking I was human ever since I got here. Now you find out I'm a vampire from Sydney no less, and you decide it's time to collect me like one of your specimens or objects in that stupid pawn shop you own."

"I wouldn't continue if I were you, Miss Swan."

"Or what? You're going to hit me with that silver tipped cane of yours?"

"Much worse"

Emma jumped out of the way before he could pull the trigger of the gun he pulled from his jacket, displaying her vampiric ability to move quickly. With a glance at Ruby the werewolf didn't need much more conformation and shifted into her large black wolf form.

Gold decided to deal with her first and shot a fireball at her, narrowly missing. He stumbled when he felt Emma push him from behind, using what strength he had to knock her back. Emma hissed as he turned around to hit her with his silver tipped cane, Regina coming to the rescue by hitting him with a temporary movement spell, slowing him down significantly.

Emma shot her lover a thankful grin and turned back to her tormentor, smirking. She stalked forward and managed to punch him in the gut before the spell wore of, the imp managing to grab her wrist and twist it. Emma yelled out in pain before backing away, Gold laughing madly. He stalked towards her and watched as her wrist seemed to 'pop' back into place as if it never happened.

He was so fascinated that he temporarily forgot about Ruby and the wolf attacked him from behind, leaving a large ripped claw mark down his back. He yelled out in pain and swatted the wolf away with his cane, Ruby howling as the silver end managed to pierce the skin. Charming and Snow pulled the wolf to the sidelines as Regina stepped further into the fight, ready to help.

She called his name, making him turn, and suddenly purple smoke surrounded him, blurring his vision. Emma took this as her chance and gripped hold of his jacket. Regina and the others watched on in awe as the vampire used all of her strength to throw the scrawny man across the parking lot.

Regina saw Emma's eyes glow blue like the first night she found out she was a vampire, and she watched as that woman ran as fast as she could towards their enemy, grabbing his cane on the way.

He cowered in fear as she approached him, picking the gun up on the way. She then held the cane across his neck, his hands managing to sneak underneath in an attempt to keep her from cutting off his air supply. She pressed down hard as she threw Regina the gun that contained the 'vampire tranquilizer'.

She punched him hard in the face before grabbing the cane and handing it to Regina. He squirmed to get free without the constriction of it, but Emma just gripped his collar tighter. She pulled him to his feet and held him a few inches above the floor, showing off her impressive vampire strength once more.

"You dare come after me or my family again, and I will make sure that next time I actually kill you" She hissed, baring her fangs.

She then threw him even further across the parking lot and panted heavily as she watched him grab his cane and hobble away. Regina could feel the tenseness rolling off of her lover and carefully stepped forward, hesitantly placing a hand on the small of her back. She half expected her to flinch away at the contact but the vampire could feel it was her lover, allowing only her to calm her.

Right now she was in her full form, a foreign creature that she wished her family never had to see. But in this moment the only thing that seemed to make sense in the animalistic haze that consumed her mind was her mate, which just so happened to be none other than Regina.

The brunettes touch soon become much more confident and she reached up, turning the blonde around by the shoulder. When Emma turned around completely she came into contact with bright blue glowing eyes, ones much more different than her usual inviting green ones. However, even seeing the fangs and eyes, she didn't care. She didn't care she was facing a creature. To her she was just Emma, who happened to be a vampire.

Not caring that the others were still probably watching in the distance, she wrapped her arms around Emma's neck, pulling the adrenaline pumped vampire into her embrace. A few moments later she felt Emma's arms wrap around her waist and a nose nudging at her neck.

Smiling, she tilted her head a little and let the vampire nuzzle her nose to her pulse point. She knew Emma wouldn't feed on her in front of the others, especially in public, but if this was something that gave her comfort, she was happy to comply.

* * *

That afternoon Regina forced Emma to take the rest of the day off and did the same for herself. Usually she would have been cautious to take a day off, but today was an exception. Emma had been quiet ever since they had arrived back at the mansion, and when Regina came back from the kitchen with hot drinks, she made it her goal to find out what was wrong.

"Emma?" She coaxed, her hand falling to the blonde's knee.

The vampire just continued looking straight forward, saying nothing.

"Emma, please say something" The brunette said softly, hating for how weak she sounded.

At the humans tone Emma turned her head to look at her. She knew Regina hated feeling this way and she scolded herself for not answering sooner. Tears welled in their eyes for an unknown reason, everything crashing back on top of them. Emma moved first, leaning in and connecting their lips together. Regina's hand cupped the blonde's jaw as it grew more passionate before she heard an audible click and Emma suddenly pulled away, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Sorry" The blonde mumbled.

Regina let a small smile grace her lips, reaching up and gently prying Emma's hand away from her face. She let her hand cup her jaw once more and rub soothing patterns along her jawbone.

"Don't hide yourself from me. You don't have anything to worry about."

Emma's eyes drifted up and connected with Regina's, seeing nothing but trust and acceptance being beamed back at her. With a new found confidence she let go of her control, letting her body and instincts take over. Their bodies gravitated towards each other as their need grew with each kiss they shared.

Regina's hands went to Emma's jacket, trying to push it from her shoulders. Emma just smiled, pulling away with her eyes still closed. When she opened them she saw that Regina's eyes were dilated with a thick lust. Grinning, she stood up and offered her hand. When Regina took it, she wrapped her arms around the brunette's waist, travelling lower until they cupped her rear. The other woman got the idea and let Emma pull her up, her legs wrapping tightly around the blonde's waist.

She gripped Regina tightly in her arms as she moved them out of the room and towards the stairs. Regina just smiled at Emma the entire time, marvelling in how she could focus on carrying her up the stairs without even looking. Her heart rate picked up with each step down the hallway and when Emma nudged the door to her bedroom open with her foot she thought she might just have a heart attack at the thought of what was to come.

Instead of placing her on the bed, Emma kicked the door shut with her foot and stood just looking at Regina. "What's wrong?" The blonde asked.

Regina cursed herself for being so obvious. "Nothing"

"Regina..."

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, hating how Emma could already coax her into admitting something with barely any effort. "I'm nervous"

"Why?"

"Because we've only done this once before"

Emma's face fell, prompting her to carefully lay Regina down on the bed, then sitting on the edge next to her. There was an audible click a few moments later to signify her fangs retracting. "Oh"

Regina immediately sat up and wrapped her arms around the blonde's waist from behind. "What's wrong?" She felt a sense of deja vu at how quickly the conversation had turned around.

"I'm not pushing you into something am I? If so, we can stop if you don't want to go any further"

"Emma, that will not be necessary. I actually want this very much. I was merely nervous because we've only done it once before"

"Are you sure?" Emma asked, her question meaning much more than being ready, asking her if she wanted everything that came with it, including her feeding.

Regina nodded with a determination the blonde had only ever seen when she was presented with a challenge. "Yes, I'm sure"

That was all Emma needed to hear. She turned around and maneuvered herself so that she was hovering above the brunette. As she looked down, Regina reached up and cupped both sides of her face with her hands, pulling her down a little more so they were inches apart. Her thumbs rubbed Emma's cheeks soothingly, making the vampire nuzzle into one of her palms. Regina let a small smile grace her lips before she brought both hands towards Emma's mouth. Her thumbs caressed the blonde's lips as if asking her a silent question. She got the response she wanted when Emma's fangs protracted once more, the quick click sending a shiver down her entire spine.

Emma smiled in response to the shiver, Regina's hands falling to her shoulders as she kissed her way down the brunette's jaw to her neck, tasting the sweet skin that pulsed up and down with every beat of her heart. A low growl came from deep within as she felt her primal need start to take over her mind.

Regina could feel Emma's true power roll off onto her, making her shiver again. She'd seen it before when she was fighting, but to be on the receiving end made her see it in a whole new light. She'd never thought someone like Emma could have possessed this type of power without being completely evil, but laying here on her bed with the blonde hovering above her in her truest form it made her re-evaluate everything she'd considered 'evil'.

With something that people considered a sign of darkness and that she should be completely terrified, but with Emma on top of her she could only feel love. She could sense that the blonde would never push her into something she didn't want, and she knew she would never take it without asking. That's why as Emma kissed and nuzzled at her pulse point, she knew that the blonde would always keep herself in control.

Each kiss of her lips reassured Regina that Emma would never direct the anger she'd seen earlier onto her. It spoke volumes of love that had continued to grow tenfold in a matter of days. This was what amazed the brunette, how something like their relationship could have happened so fast. As quickly as it did, she found herself not caring, knowing deep within her soul Emma was someone she'd never truly lose, and that was what scared her.

Everyone she had loved she'd lost.

Emma picked up on Regina's discomfort and as if reading her mind understood what she was thinking. She pulled away to look down into her lover's eyes, sending her a reassuring smile. "Hey, I'm not going anywhere, I promise"

And with that simple promise Regina felt as if the weight of her past and the entire world fell off of her shoulders. Emma felt the brunette's body relax into the bed below them and she could see the tenseness drain from her body. Smiling, she kissed her way back down Regina's neck, enjoying the way that her girlfriend seemed to be emanating a freeness that wasn't there before.

Hands roamed at a comfortable pace, tugging on clothes and removing them piece by piece until they were admiring each other's naked bodies.

In the late afternoon light Regina could see various scars marring Emma's body and she switched their positions so that she was on top. She let her lips roam and caress the vampire's scars as if they were still painful. Emma appreciated every touch of the brunette's lips, knowing that even though they didn't hurt, Regina was soothing their still painful memories.

She returned the favor as she moved inside her lover, her hand moving in and out at a steady pace as she let her lips caress Regina's slightly tan skin. She nipped at her neck, making her way up to the brunette's ear before kissing her way across her cheek and then to her lips where she breathed in her enticing moans. Their lips connected briefly before the blonde pulled away, kissing the scar above the right side of Regina's lips, paying special attention to it.

They moved in sync as Regina's moans grew louder and louder, signaling that she was close to falling over the edge of an intimate bliss that only Emma could bring her to. She could feel Emma's beast just below the surface, but with every caress of her soft hands and lips, she knew she was much more than just a vampire.

In that moment she wasn't afraid to admit she was finally letting someone love her for the first time in a very long time. It had been oh so long since she'd felt this free with somebody, the last being Daniel. She briefly wondered if this was what True Love was supposed to feel like, Emma being her complete equal.

It seemed as if the vampire knew how to even the load on her shoulders and the effect of the blonde's words on her earlier only seemed to convince her even further that Emma was much more to her than she acknowledged.

As she fell over the edge, she felt Emma's fangs sink deep into her neck, steadily suckling in time with every movement of their bodies. She rode out her ecstasy at Emma's expert hand, and breathed out deeply as she felt her entire body relax into the bed.

Emma suckled for a few moments longer before pulling away, licking at her neck to make sure the blood didn't drip onto her expensive bed sheets. When she pulled her head away, she found Regina looking at her intently. She blushed a little under the gaze and when she went to wipe her face of stray blood, Regina's hand stopped her.

Curious as to what the brunette wanted to do, she stayed still. Regina's hand came up to her mouth and her thumb trailed across her bottom lip. Regina studied the way Emma's fangs peaked out from under her upper lip and smiled. She pulled her thumb away slightly before letting the blonde suck the blood off.

Something inside of her seemed to click at the sight and when Emma had licked her finger clean she let her body curl into the vampire's embrace. Emma happily wrapped her arms around her and kissed the top of her head.

A few minutes later Regina pulled away to look at her. "Do you want me to..." She blushed, hating herself for even having to ask.

Emma smiled and shook her head, pulling the brunette back into her arms. "No" She whispered back. "I'm good"

* * *

The next day Emma and Regina met with everybody at Snow and Charming's apartment after they'd dropped Henry off at school together. Everybody was anxious after yesterday's events and they wanted to know what Emma wanted to do.

"So, what's going on?" Charming asked as he sat next to Snow at the table.

"Me and Regina talked last night and we decided that going after Gold right now isn't the best idea"

"Why?" Snow asked.

"Because we need to get the town on our side. I want to walk in public without people staring daggers at me or threatening to kill me for what I am. So, we decided that it would be a good idea to get rid of the person who's spreading all this hate"

Regina took over. "Yes, and that's Sydney. We take him out of the picture, it gives us a chance to try and get the town on our side and possibly gain more allies. Once we have gotten rid of him, we can go after Gold."

Ruby nodded. "Sounds like a good idea"

"Yes" Belle agreed.

Emma and Regina turned to Snow and Charming. "So, what do you think?" Emma asked.

"When do you want to start?" Snow asked.

"Not today. I want to take a rest from all this for at least a day"

"Yes" Regina agreed, a hand going to her lover's thigh under the table. "I agree that I would rather have Emma take a day off from this. Yesterday was exciting for all of us, but we need to regroup and think about how we can take Gold and Sydney down for good."

* * *

Later that day, they all went back to work, Regina accompanying Emma to the station.

"You know, you don't need to follow me everywhere Regina. I am a vampire you know" The blonde said, throwing her keys down on her desk.

"I know that, Miss Swan" Regina said in her tone that spoke all business. Her posture was as regal as ever as she kept her hands in her coat pockets, glancing around at the station and over to her girlfriend who was searching in her desk drawers for something. "But I'm not letting you out of my sight"

"Is that so?" Emma asked as she stood up straight, having found what she needed, which just so happened to be a pen.

Regina rolled her eyes at Emma's lack of organization. "Yes dear, and today you are coming to work in my office so that I can keep an eye on you and actually make sure that you are getting work done. I'm sure your father will be able to manage here"

Emma grinned, placing the pen she'd just found down on her desk and walking up to the brunette, placing her arms around her waist and drawing their bodies flush together.

"Hmm, and what if I refuse?" The blonde grinned, kissing her way down Regina's neck.

"Then I will have to use one of my many persuasion tricks that are just for you" She breathed out throatily.

Emma just smirked against her neck, backing them up towards her desk. When she reached it she pushed Regina up against it, making the brunette yelp a little in surprise.

"Miss Swan, what do you think you're doing?"

"Something I've wanted to do for a very long time."

Her hands stayed planted firmly on her waist as she lifted the brunette onto the desk, her fangs clicking out. She pushed forward and coaxed Regina's legs open with one of her hands. The mayor happily obliged, her mind fogged up with the feeling of Emma's lips and fangs teasing her neck.

Regina's hands came up to rest on Emma's shoulders and it wasn't long before they traveled down to the collar of Emma's favorite red jacket, gripping on with all the strength she had. It was all she could do to keep herself from literally ripping off Emma's clothes there and then.

Emma kissed her way back up Regina's neck, up along her jaw before coming up and claiming the brunette's lips. They rocked slightly as they kissed, Emma's hands gripping Regina's waist tightly as she pushed down her primal need to mark and claim her as her own.

The two were broken abruptly out of their heated make out session when Snow, Ruby, and David all walked in, freezing in place with shocked expressions on their faces, all except Ruby who had a knowing smirk on her face.

Emma froze, not even daring to move an inch for fear that she'd be yelled at. Regina stayed in a similar state, the two of them glancing over at the new arrivals. Regina paled, her hands still gripping tightly at Emma's jacket as the blonde stood intimately between her legs.

The others just continued into the station over to David's desk, allowing them to move into more appropriate positions. Emma stepped back and Regina hopped down from the desk, smoothing out her skirt and coat. Emma didn't need to do anything but look at her lover, knowing that Regina was angry that they had been found in such a compromising position.

"The files Miss Swan" She said as calmly as she could before walking out of her office and down the hallway.

Emma sighed in frustration and grabbed her files before running after her girlfriend, Ruby smirking at her. Snow still looked shocked and David looked as if he was confused. Shaking her head she set off in a sprint out of the building, making a mental note to get back at her best friend later. But for now, she had to make sure Regina wasn't mad at her, which was looking less and less possible with each passing second.

She jumped into the passenger seat of Regina's Benz and it wasn't long before they were driving towards the town hall. The tension in the air was thick and the blonde knew better than to push for answers until they were inside.

She trudged behind the mayor all the way into her office, and when she clicked the door closed she knew she needed to make sure that they were ok.

"Regina?"

"Yes, dear?" She said, looking up at Emma as she sat down behind her desk.

"Are we ok?" She asked nervously.

"Why do you say that?"

"Because you seem angry. You're not mad at me for what happened are you?"

Regina sighed. "No, I'm not mad at you Emma. I'm mad at your parents and your best friend for walking in on us when we were, you know..."

"Making out like a pair of horny teenagers?" The blonde grinned.

"Yes, as you so bluntly put it"

The vampire sauntered up to the desk, a fang ridden smirk plastered across her face as she placed her files down on the desk.

"Admit it, you liked it"

"..."

"You did, didn't you?"

"Maybe" Regina said, sighing in defeat. "Though maybe next time we could do it somewhere where people can't walk in on us"

"But that's half the fun"

"Well, at least somewhere we can lock the door. I really don't want your parents walking in on us again"

"Deal. So, now that's cleared up, should we get to work?" The blonde asked, directing her gaze to her files.

"Yes, that is one of the smartest things you've said since you met me"

"Ow, that hurt! I've said many smart things since then"

"Like what?" The brunette asked, raising an eyebrow. Emma stayed silent. "Just as I thought. Now do some work dear and I'll see if you deserve a lunch break"

"How come you get to decide?"

"Because you are in my office and in my office you work under my rules"

"Fine, but if you don't I'm still leaving and getting some anyway"

"Yes, what ever you say dear" Regina replied, her head buried in her own paperwork already.

"I'm serious Regina"

"I know dear."

Emma just huffed, pouting when she got no response. When Regina seemed engrossed in her work she sighed and gave up, deciding to do some of her own. She missed the satisfied smirk that crossed Regina's face when she starting writing.

* * *

A few hours later they grabbed lunch together and an hour after they'd eaten as they were working once more in a comfortable silence, Emma's phone rang. Regina looked up from the document she was working on with slight annoyance and the vampire just shrugged. The blonde slid her finger across the screen and answered the call.

"Hello?"

"_Emma?"_

"Mo-Mary Margaret?" She corrected herself.

"_Emma, Henry's gone"_

Emma looked up, seeing that Regina didn't even need to have the phone to her ear to have heard what she said.

"What do you mean he's gone?"

"_The class came back from lunch and he was just gone"_

Emma looked up at Regina who had a look of worry plastered across her face.

"Ok, we're on our way"

* * *

TBC


	8. Deal

As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_Hey guys, important note: I'm putting this story on hiatus until I've finished Gods And Monsters, so just know I don't know when it will be, but I will be coming back to this story. Anyway, this update should be enough, it's not long, but at least it's better than nothing._

_As usual, thanks to everyone who added to favs, alerts and to everybody who reviewed, I still very much appreciate it!_

* * *

As soon as Emma put the phone down Regina was already out of her office and downstairs in a matter of seconds. Emma rushed to catch up to her as she made her way to her Benz, fumbling with the keys and mumbling. The vampire could have sworn she heard 'Damn Snow' somewhere in between her ramblings.

Emma walked around to her and placed a comforting hand on her forearm, making her stop what she was doing. "Take a deep breath and be calm for a minute. It won't do us any good if you don't calm down. Let me drive"

Regina took a deep breath as Emma suggested and didn't even fight when they blonde gently took the keys from her hands. The vampire placed a comforting kiss to the side of her head in thanks. "Thank you" She whispered softly. She then kept hold of her forearm and directed her to the passenger side of the car, helping her in before moving back around towards the drivers side.

She slid in and started it up, taking Regina's hand across the dashboard. As she pulled out onto the road she couldn't help but think about how the brunette was letting her drive her prized Benz. It was off limits yet here she was letting her drive it, _her_ of all people. Shaking her head of her thoughts she focused on the road, her thumb rubbing soothingly over Regina's knuckles. By the time they arrived at the school she felt the former queen less tense than before and hoped to God that it would stay that way when they came face to face with Mary Margaret.

As soon as they exited the car Emma pocketed the keys and made sure to grip Regina's hand tightly within her own, hoping to keep the human at least somewhat calm. They kept their pace quick and it wasn't long before they found the pixie haired woman standing in front of the entrance pacing with a worried look on her face.

"Mary Margaret..." Emma said as they walked up to her.

The woman in question looked up at the sound of her name and a slight wave of relief washed over her features, although there was still a hint of worry and fear embedded in her features.

"Oh Emma, thank God."

"What happened?" Regina cut in, earning a hard but grounding squeeze from Emma.

Snow let it go as she took a deep breath. "We went to lunch and when we came back he wasn't in class."

"And you checked everywhere?" Emma asked.

The woman just nodded. "Yes."

A few moments passed before Emma turned to walk back towards the Benz. She was stopped when Regina held her in place by their joined hands. "Where are you going?"

"We need to look for him"

"But what if it's Gold?" Snow asked.

Emma sighed. "It could be but we need to search for him first"

"Do you really think that's wise?" Regina asked, a serious look on her face.

"I don't know, but what else can we do?"

"I think I may have an idea." Snow said, catching both Regina and Emma's attention.

"And what might that be?" Regina asked coldly, trying to keep the glare that was threatening to plaster her features at bay.

"Well, maybe you could get Ruby to check out Gold whilst we all look."

Emma thought about it for a few seconds, looking at Regina before looking back at her mother. "Ok. Call Ruby and tell her to go ahead and look. Me and Regina will start searching. You go and meet David at the station and call me when you start looking."

Snow nodded and pulled out her phone, already dialling Ruby's number. Satisfied, Emma then made her way over to the Benz, once again taking the wheel.

An hour later and they'd checked everywhere he could have been. Deciding to check one last place once more for good measure, Emma started heading for the mansion. She didn't even need to look over at the other woman to know she was fuming. She wasn't necessarily mad at her, but she was mad at not being able to find their son. It didn't take a genius to know Regina hated these kinds of situations and instead of broaching the subject and trying to get the brunette to talk about it, the vampire decided better of it. If there was one thing Regina needed right now, it was to not be talked to, and she really didn't want to snap at Emma, the one person she needed more than anybody in their current situation as she understood exactly where she was coming from.

When they pulled up to the mansion Regina was out of the car before Emma had even put it in park. The blonde just sighed as she got out of the car, seeing Regina rushing in the front door and slamming it behind her. Knowing that it was risky trying to stop her, Emma just walked slowly into the house and waited in the foyer as Regina ran around the house like a headless chicken in the hopes that Henry had came back here.

She pocketed the car keys and crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for the brunette to reappear. When she did, she saw her at the top of the stairs with tears in her eyes. They glazed over even more when her gaze locked on the blondes, the vampire catching the ever so slight quiver of her bottom lip. To anybody else they would have kissed it but due to her heightened eyesight she caught it. With that she sent her a sympathetic look, Regina moving down the stairs slowly until she had reached her.

Emma opened her arms and the usually strong woman collapsed into her embrace. She gripped tightly at the collar of the blondes jacket, burying her head in the vampires neck. Emma just wrapped her arms around her waist, pulling her in as close as possible and kissing the top of her head.

Regina sniffled as she pulled away enough to look up at the vampire, tear tracks staining her face and glistening in the light. The sight made Emma's heart ache. "I'm getting your jacket wet"

Emma reached up and wiped away the tears with her thumbs, lingering on the brunette's cheeks and rubbing soothingly. "I don't mind" she whispered, leaning forward and kissing the stray tear that ran down her lovers cheek at the soft comment.

As she felt the blonde kiss at her sensitive eyes, eliminating her tears, Regina's heart clenched in her chest. She'd never felt such love and tenderness as she had since she'd been with Emma. She'd never opened up to anybody, keeping everything bottled up but ever since the blonde had shared with her exactly what she was she couldn't help but let her see her for who she really was. It both scared and annoyed her at the same time. A part of her deep down hated the idea that she was opening up to anybody in the first place but Emma had made her feel the most loved in her entire life time that she physically couldn't help herself.

She never would have accepted it but in this very moment, scared for her son, she couldn't help but feel greedy as she clutched on tightly to Emma's jacket, the other woman giving her nothing but comfort and love. Although they were locked in a tight and intimate embrace, the vampire's comfortable silence was giving her the space she needed. She knew that the human didn't want to talk, and that's what let Regina relax and accept what was being given to her, not having to worry about explaining what was going through her mind in that moment. She knew Emma wouldn't run but she really didn't want to explain to anybody what she felt. She still had a long way to go when it came to expressing her deepest and most intimate feelings to anybody, including Emma.

A kiss to the top of her head broke her out of her thoughts and she curled into the vampires warmth even more, wanting nothing more than to stay exactly how she was. But, knowing that they still had to find Henry she pulled away. Emma still stayed close as she looked into her lovers watery eyes, lacing their fingers together.

They were lucky when Emma's phone started ringing. With her free hand she reached into her pocket to retrieve it, pulling Regina close by their joined hands at the same time. She slid it open with her thumb and brought it up to her ear.

"Hello?"

_"Emma?"_

"Hey Ruby, you find anything?"

_"Yeah. Me and Belle are staking out Gold's house. We just saw him with Henry through the window."_

"Ok-hold on, I'm getting another call"

_"I'll hold"_

Emma then switched to the other line. "Hello?"

_"Hello dearie"_

Emma let out a low grumble from the deep confines of her chest, Regina feeling how angry she was and how fast it actually manifested. "Gold..." She grumbled.

She heard a laugh on the other end of the line. _"That's no way to greet family"_

"We're not family"

_"You may like to think that way but we're connected, and I have that very link right here with me now"_

"Where's Henry?"

_"He's sat with me right now. Say hello to your mother Henry"_

By now Regina was so close she could hear everything Emma was. _"Mom?"_

His voice sounded so broken it made both mothers hearts break. "Henry?" Regina said.

_"Mom? Where's ma?"_

"She's right here sweetie"

Emma took that as her cue to speak. "I'm here Henry. Are you ok? Are you hurt?"

_"No, I'm ok."_

"Good. We love you Henry" Regina said, her voice breaking slightly as she told him they loved him.

They both heard a sniffle on the other end of the line before the phone was snatched away and Gold started talking again. _"How sickeningly sweet, don't you think? If you want to see Henry again I suggest you come and talk to me face to face."_

He hung up and Emma was already heading for the door. Regina caught up with her just as she stepped out onto the porch, clutching tightly at her arm. Emma tried to shrug her off unsuccessfully.

"Let me go!"

"Emma..."

"Let me go Regina!" The former queen felt the vampires anger bubbling just beneath the surface but she stood her ground.

"No! Calm down" She felt Emma ease up a little, the anger still clearly there. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? That little imp had the nerve to take our son even after I spared his life. He did the one thing he should have never done"

"What's that?" Regina asked, trying to keep calm. She knew Emma would never hurt her but the human in her was a little intimidated by the vampire's burning anger.

"He messed with a vampire"

Regina heard Emma's fangs audibly click down as she turned around and headed for the car. The brunette just stood there in a slight daze for a few moments before realizing that she needed to move. As soon as she entered the car they were speeding off towards Gold's house.

Luckily Ruby had text Snow and Charming and they were all waiting for them. Emma put the car in park, handed Regina the keys and stood at the foot of the path, everybody standing behind her defensively. As expected, the front door opened a few moments later and Gold hobbled out, the damage Emma had done to him still clear on his face in the form of cuts and a few bruises.

"Ah, Emma. You brought the family, how sweet of you"

"Cut the crap. Where's Henry?" She growled, her fists clenching at her sides.

"All in due time. Why don't we talk about why I called you here in the first place?"

"What do you want?"

The man laughed as he rested both hands on his cane. "What do I want? You should know that by now exactly what I want"

"Me"

He smiled at the frown on her face. "Yes"

"And if I give myself up you'll let him go?"

"Yes. I never go back on my deals, Miss Swan, you should know that."

"It comes with a price, what is it?"

"You give yourself up to me for Henry, and I get to do whatever I want with you"

"Fine"

"Is that a deal?"

"Yes"

"Emma!" Snow cried.

"Mary Mar-"

"Maybe you should talk this over before you agree dearie. You have five minutes starting now"

Snow immediately grabbed her arm and dragged her away. Everybody else followed and a few glares were directed her way.

"Emma, how could you do this!" Snow chastised.

"Yeah, isn't this the thing we've been trying to stop happening?" Ruby asked.

"You can't give yourself up" Charming added. "Think about what will happen to you"

Emma growled, her fangs protracting for all of them to see. "Everybody shut up! I know we've been fighting to stop this from happening but this is Henry we're talking about! You seriously think I wouldn't give myself up for his safety? Right now this is the only option we have. If I get hurt, I get hurt. I'm a vampire, you couldn't ever understand the kinds of things I can be put through"

"What if he tortures you?" Belle asked.

"That's a risk I'm willing to take. My minds made up so don't think you can fight me on this"

Before she could think she was pulled away from the group by Regina, tears evident in her eyes as the vampire looked at her face.

"Regina-"

"No, you don't get to speak" Emma just sighed, knowing she wouldn't win this. "Right now you're about to give yourself up! We can take him together, we're strong enough!"

"I know, and that's been proved so many times before like when we stopped the trigger and when we saved Henry from Neverland. Regina, I know we can take him, trust me I do, but I don't want Henry in the crossfire. He has been so many times before and I want that to stop"

"I know, but I don't want to lose you after I just found you"

Emma looked at the woman who was trying so hard not to break. She had seen Regina's facade crack more than ever over the past week or so and as she looked at her now she knew that if she lost both Emma and Henry she would never come back from the darkness that was threatening to take her over at the loss of the only things keeping her from going completely evil and insane like her mother.

The blonde just embraced her like she had not thirty minutes ago and placed a comforting but reassuring kiss to the brunette's lips. Gold interrupted them as they pulled away, their faces inches from one another.

"Time's up dearies."

Emma just looked at Regina in a way that oozed strength and pulled away completely, Regina hating the sudden emptiness that engulfed her body and soul at the same time. In an unusual act of contact, Ruby moved towards the brunette who was barely keeping herself together and placed a comforting arm around her shoulders. Surprisingly Regina didn't try to pull away and accepted the gesture.

Emma walked halfway up the path before stopping. "Before I give myself over I want to see Henry"

"Just as you wish" He sighed, entering his house once more.

A few tense moments later and he re-appeared, a broken Henry stood beside him. The boy immediately moved towards his blonde mother when Gold clamped a hand down on his shoulder stopping him.

"Uh uh uh, not so fast my dear boy. Miss Swan, if you please"

Emma nodded and walked up towards them. "At least let me take him back over there"

"No such luck. He goes on his own"

Emma nodded and stood in front of them, taking off her jacket and leaving herself in a tank top. She then placed it around Henry's shoulders and was surprised when Gold didn't pull them apart.

"Henry, I need you to be strong for your mom ok?"

"Why?"

"Because I'm not coming back"

"But-"

Before he could continue Emma had pulled him into a tight embrace, the vampire stopping him from speaking any more painful sentences. When she let go she kissed him on the top of his head before moving away.

Gold pushed him towards the rest of his family and a tear rolled down his cheek as Regina embraced him, his brunette mothers gaze never leaving Emma. The imp then gripped the vampire by the bicep and conjured up a pair of silver handcuffs. Regina watched as Emma gasped when the metal clamped around her wrists tightly, burning her skin slightly.

He then pushed her into the house and slammed the door behind him. It took both Charming and Ruby to force Regina back into the Benz along with Henry and it was decided that Ruby would drive them back to the mansion, everybody else following behind so that they could decide how to rescue the vampire.

Regina became detached as soon as she exited her car, barely keeping herself together just enough to reassure Henry that Emma would be ok. They knew they had to discuss what to do but they also knew that she had to make sure Henry was ok. Promising to stay downstairs, Regina let everybody quietly discuss the next move whilst she took her son upstairs to his bedroom.

She could tell he was tired and just like when he was little she helped him change into his pyjamas and tucked him into bed. "Mom?" He asked quietly.

"Yes?" She responded, lovingly brushing some stray strands of hair out of his eyes.

"Ma's going to be ok, isn't she? I mean, she's a vampire so she can't be hurt right?"

Truthfully, Regina didn't know how to respond. She knew Emma was strong but at the hands of Gold she didn't even want to think about how he could hurt her. But, she knew she had to put on a strong face for Henry, so decided to tell him what he wanted to hear.

"She'll be ok. Now go to sleep, you must be tired."

He nodded, Regina leaning in and placing a kiss on his forehead. She then stood up and moved towwards the door, stopping when she heard him call to her.

"Yes?" She responded, turning to face him.

He pointed to Emma's jacket which was draped across the back of his computer chair. "You can have her jacket. I know you want it"

"Are you sure?"

He nodded. "Yeah"

Regina took it without another word and whispered a goodnight to her son before clicking the door closed behind her softly. She knew she had to do something about Gold but right now the only thing she could think about was how Emma had given herself up for their son, sparing him from whatever Gold was no undoubtedly planning to put him through. He knew that Emma would do anything to save Henry, including giving herself up, and he had played it exactly how he wanted. He had manipulated once again and got what he desired, no matter the cost. Now, all Regina wanted to do was bypass everybody else and just be alone.

So, instead of heading downstairs she moved along the hall towards 'their' bedroom and locked the door behind her, not wanting to be disturbed. She then pulled on the blonde's jacket, feeling somewhat surrounded by her unique scent, and laid down on her side, burying her head in the vampire's pillow.

That's when she let her emotions flow through her in the form of strangled sobs and hot burning tears.

Emma immediately felt Regina's spike in emotions and struggled against the restrains Gold had trapped her in up against his wall in his damp and cold basement. She yelled out loud as she felt Regina call out desperately for her. Their blood bond seemed to choke her as she struggled to pull herself free from her restraints. It gripped hold of her heart and seemed to clench down on the muscle, making it hard for her to breathe. The bond could be a gift and a curse as she could feel both Regina's happiness and sadness.

Right now the pain that Regina was feeling, she could feel, only for her she could feel it tenfold and the vampire in her wanted nothing more than to rush to her mate and comfort her, to stop what was causing her pain. But, she was stuck and that's what made her angry. She knew what she done had spared their son but she also knew, even when she was doing it, that she was no doubt putting Regina through pain she really didn't deserve.

Gold laughed as he came down the stairs. He rested his cane up against the opposite wall and looked down at the surgical instruments he had laid out on a perfectly polished steel tray.

"Dearie, she can't hear you, but I'm guessing you can feel her pain. And you know what? It makes you desperate, which is perfect"

"What are you going to do?"

He turned around with a large needle full of what looked to be his silver formula. "I'm going to experiment"

* * *

TBC


End file.
